Missing Sierra Nevada College Student Last Seen in Goleta
Dianne Thacher’s Car Found Abandoned on Hollister Avenue
[Update, 2:28 p.m.]
Thacher’s cell phone has been traced to an area approximately five to 10 miles north of the City of Goleta and south of Gaviota along the coast, according to a Sheriff’s Office press release. Her phone was traced to about 15 miles west of the 7600 block of Hollister Ave., where her car, a dark blue 2000 Honda CRV with Rhode Island license plates, was found abandoned with a flat tire last Tuesday.
Sheriff’s detectives are consulting Thacher’s phone records, her social media posts, and her friends and family in efforts to find her. On Monday, a k-9 helped search the area where her car was found, the press release said.
[Original Story]
A 23-year-old Sierra Nevada College student, Dianne Thacher, was reported missing Sunday by family in Rhode Island to the Santa Barbara County Sheriff’s Office and to authorities in Washoe County, Nevada, according to a Sheriff’s Office press release.
Thacher’s family hadn’t heard from her since last Monday, but told authorities she was reportedly meeting up with friends in California and staying in a motel on the 6000 block of Hollister Avenue in Goleta, the Sheriff’s Office said in a press release. Thacher was last seen checking into her motel room last Tuesday. Later that day, her car was found abandoned with a flat tire on the side of the road on the 7600 block of Hollister Ave.
Sheriff’s deputies traced Thacher’s cell phone to several miles north of where her car was discovered, but her phone hasn’t been active since last Tuesday. Santa Barbara County Air Support has conducted aerial searches of the areas near where her car was found and her cell phone was traced. The Sheriff’s Search and Rescue team is also searching the area.
Authorities say no evidence suggests foul play in Thacher’s disappearance, but her family members describe the situation as suspicious and uncharacteristic of her. Anyone with information about Thacher’s whereabouts should call the Sheriff’s Office at (805) 683-2724 or the Sheriff’s anonymous tip line at (805) 681-4171.
