Sandra Coke's Family: 'Our Hearts Are Heavy'

Update: The Oakland Tribune reported this morning (Monday) that the Alameda County coroner's office is performing an autopsy today on the body found in Vacaville last week and that the identity of the woman's body will not be made public until Tuesday at the earliest.

By Bay City News Service

The family of a missing North Oakland woman made a statement Sunday expressing the grim possibility that a woman's body found in Vacaville Friday during a search is that of 50-year-old Sandra Coke.

Coke left her home in the 600 block of Aileen Street last Sunday, Aug. 4, around 8:30 p.m.

She was last seen by her 15-year-old daughter who said her mother was meeting someone with information about the family's stolen dog. When she never returned the daughter reported her missing. Her car and one of her cellphones were found in Oakland and Richmond in the following days.

Thursday night search efforts were moved to the Lake Chabot area in Vallejo.

On Friday, authorities shifted the search to the area near Lagoon Valley Park, located at 1 Peña Adobe Road in Vacaville. That afternoon a woman's body was found near the park in a rural part of Vacaville.

The Solano County coroner's office has yet to identify the body as Coke.

"Our hearts are heavy to think she may not be coming home to us, but we have been sustained through this ordeal by the unbelievable outpouring of love, concern and prayers from all of you," family members said in the statement.

The statement said local authorities would have the identity of the body Monday afternoon.

The search for Coke, who is an investigator at the federal public defender's office in Sacramento, moved to Solano County after Oakland police arrested 56-year-old Randy Alana.

Alana is a person of interest in Coke's disappearance, but he was arrested on an unrelated parole violation, according to police.

Coke was apparently last seen with Alana last Sunday night. The two had dated in the past, according to police.

Alana has prior convictions for rape and other crimes and is registered as a high-risk sex offender.

A $100,000 reward had been offered by family members last week for information about Coke's whereabouts.

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