Crime & Safety
Update: Search for Missing North Oakland Woman Moves to Vacaville
Sandra Coke's family issued a statement Friday morning thanking law enforcement, the media and the public for their help in the search for the missing North Oakland woman, who disappeared Sunday evening.
Updated Friday, Aug. 9, 2:05 p.m.:
Bay City News—Authorities who have been searching an area of Vallejo for a missing Oakland woman announced this afternoon that the search is moving to a park in Vacaville. Sandra Coke, 50, was last seen at her home in the 600 block of Aileen Street around 8:30 p.m. Sunday.
Her 15-year-old daughter last saw her that night, and family members said she was meeting someone with information about the family's stolen dog. When she never returned her daughter reported her missing.
Her car was found two miles away from her home the following night and one of her two cellphones was eventually found discarded along Interstate Highway 80 in Richmond.
Thursday evening, a massive search involving several law enforcement agencies, including the Oakland Police Department and the Solano County Sheriff's Office, was focused on an area near Lake Chabot behind Six Flags Discovery Kingdom in Vallejo.
The search there resumed this morning with boats and dogs scouring the lake and surrounding area.
Just after noon, Solano County sheriff's officials and Oakland police said the search was moving to Lagoon Valley Park in Vacaville.
Authorities declined to elaborate on what prompted the operation to move further into Solano County.
Updated Friday, Aug. 9, 11 a.m.:
Bay City News—The search for an Oakland woman who disappeared Sunday night is continuing this morning (Friday) in Vallejo with boats and dogs focusing efforts at a lake near an amusement park.
Solano County sheriff's Lt. Daryl Snedeker told reporters this morning that authorities resumed a search for 50-year-old Sandra Coke in 3-mile area around Lake Chabot, behind Six Flags Discovery Kingdom.
Coke was last seen at her home in the 600 block of Aileen Street around 8:30 p.m. Sunday.
According to family members, she had left to meet someone with information about her family's stolen dog.
When she never returned, her 15-year-old daughter reported her missing. Her daughter was the last person to see Coke.
Oakland police Officer Johnna Watson said Coke was seen Sunday night with Randy Alana, 56 — a person of interest in her disappearance.
Alana has since been arrested on an unrelated parole violation.
He had dated Coke in the past, according to police, and is a registered as a high-risk sex offender. He has prior convictions for rape, rape in concert with force or violence and kidnapping to commit a sex offense.
Watson said this morning at the search site, "We want to rule out if there is not foul play."
The search also involves looking through surveillance footage, and interviewing family and friends to learn more about Coke, who works as an investigator at the federal public defender's office in Sacramento.
Coke has not gone missing before and it is uncharacteristic of her to leave her daughter alone at home unexpectedly, family members have said.
Statement issued by Sandra Coke's family at 9 a.m. Friday, Aug. 9:
“Sandra Coke, our beloved daughter, sister and family member, disappeared on Sunday evening, and she has not returned. We pray for her immediate return to us.
Bay City News—Authorities who have been searching an area of Vallejo for a missing Oakland woman announced this afternoon that the search is moving to a park in Vacaville. Sandra Coke, 50, was last seen at her home in the 600 block of Aileen Street around 8:30 p.m. Sunday.
Her 15-year-old daughter last saw her that night, and family members said she was meeting someone with information about the family's stolen dog. When she never returned her daughter reported her missing.
Her car was found two miles away from her home the following night and one of her two cellphones was eventually found discarded along Interstate Highway 80 in Richmond.
Thursday evening, a massive search involving several law enforcement agencies, including the Oakland Police Department and the Solano County Sheriff's Office, was focused on an area near Lake Chabot behind Six Flags Discovery Kingdom in Vallejo.
The search there resumed this morning with boats and dogs scouring the lake and surrounding area.
Just after noon, Solano County sheriff's officials and Oakland police said the search was moving to Lagoon Valley Park in Vacaville.
Authorities declined to elaborate on what prompted the operation to move further into Solano County.
Updated Friday, Aug. 9, 11 a.m.:
Bay City News—The search for an Oakland woman who disappeared Sunday night is continuing this morning (Friday) in Vallejo with boats and dogs focusing efforts at a lake near an amusement park.
Solano County sheriff's Lt. Daryl Snedeker told reporters this morning that authorities resumed a search for 50-year-old Sandra Coke in 3-mile area around Lake Chabot, behind Six Flags Discovery Kingdom.
Coke was last seen at her home in the 600 block of Aileen Street around 8:30 p.m. Sunday.
According to family members, she had left to meet someone with information about her family's stolen dog.
When she never returned, her 15-year-old daughter reported her missing. Her daughter was the last person to see Coke.
Oakland police Officer Johnna Watson said Coke was seen Sunday night with Randy Alana, 56 — a person of interest in her disappearance.
Alana has since been arrested on an unrelated parole violation.
He had dated Coke in the past, according to police, and is a registered as a high-risk sex offender. He has prior convictions for rape, rape in concert with force or violence and kidnapping to commit a sex offense.
Watson said this morning at the search site, "We want to rule out if there is not foul play."
The search also involves looking through surveillance footage, and interviewing family and friends to learn more about Coke, who works as an investigator at the federal public defender's office in Sacramento.
Coke has not gone missing before and it is uncharacteristic of her to leave her daughter alone at home unexpectedly, family members have said.
Statement issued by Sandra Coke's family at 9 a.m. Friday, Aug. 9:
“Sandra Coke, our beloved daughter, sister and family member, disappeared on Sunday evening, and she has not returned. We pray for her immediate return to us.
"We are enormously grateful for the efforts of everyone — law enforcement, colleagues and friends of Sandra, and members of the public and the media — who have labored day and night — to find Sandra.
"We want to do everything we can at this point to help that search. The police have asked us not to comment on details of the investigation. We will make no additional comments today.
"Thank you for your support in the search for our beloved Sandra.”
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Updated Friday, Aug. 9, 5:15 a.m. A massive search of the area around the Solano County Fairgrounds and nearby Lake Chabot that began last night will resume this morning, according to news reports.
Article below posted Thursday, Aug. 8:
By Bay City News Service
A high-risk sex offender is considered a person of interest in a North Oakland woman's disappearance Sunday and police have zeroed in on a body of water in Vallejo for a massive search effort, police said.
Randy Alana, 56, was with 50-year-old Sandra Coke on Sunday night, the night she disappeared, Oakland police spokeswoman Johnna Watson said.
Alana and Coke had a dating relationship in the past, Watson said.
According to the state's sex offender registry, Alana has prior convictions for rape, rape in concert with force or violence and kidnapping to commit a sex offense and is considered a high-risk sex offender.
According to an article published by the San Jose Mercury News Thursday night, Alana was also charged in 1983 with the murder of North Oakland resident Marilyn Pigott, 23, who was found beaten to death with a hammer in her apartment. Alana was acquitted of the charge, the Mercury News reports.
He has been in violation of sex offender registration requirements since June and his current address is not listed in the registry.
While Alana has not yet been accused of having a hand in Coke's disappearance, he remains in custody on a parole violation, Watson said.
Investigators now believe that Lake Chabot near the Solano County Fairgrounds in Vallejo may be a key location in the search for Coke and are concentrating a massive search there tonight (Thursday) with the assistance of the Alameda County and Solano County sheriff's offices and the FBI.
Earlier Thursday, family, friends and coworkers of the missing woman announced a $100,000 reward to help locate her.
Anyone who may have seen Coke is asked to call the Oakland Police Department's missing persons unit at (510)-238-3641, Crime Stoppers of Oakland at (510)-777-8672, tip line at (510)-777-2805, toll-free tip hotline at (855)-TIPS-247, family and friends tip line at (415)-385-5190, or email tips to Findsandracoke@gmail.com.
Coke was last seen leaving her home in the 600 block of Aileen Street at about 8:30 p.m. Sunday. Family members said she left to meet with someone with information about the family's missing dog, and was expected back shortly.
She never returned, sparking a search by friends and family members both of the Oakland neighborhood where she lived and of the Richmond neighborhood where one of her two cellphones was located, according to her family.
Her 2007 Mini Cooper convertible was located about two miles from her home in the 800 block of 32nd Street on Monday.
According to her family, by using the "Find my iPhone app" they could track her zig-zagging all over the Bay Area before the phone was abandoned near the intersection of Macdonald and Wilson Avenues off of Interstate Highway 80 in Richmond.
Coke, an investigator at the federal public defender's office in Sacramento, has also been missing from work since her disappearance, which her coworkers said was uncharacteristic of her.
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Article below posted Thursday, Aug. 8:
By Bay City News Service
A high-risk sex offender is considered a person of interest in a North Oakland woman's disappearance Sunday and police have zeroed in on a body of water in Vallejo for a massive search effort, police said.
Randy Alana, 56, was with 50-year-old Sandra Coke on Sunday night, the night she disappeared, Oakland police spokeswoman Johnna Watson said.
Alana and Coke had a dating relationship in the past, Watson said.
According to the state's sex offender registry, Alana has prior convictions for rape, rape in concert with force or violence and kidnapping to commit a sex offense and is considered a high-risk sex offender.
According to an article published by the San Jose Mercury News Thursday night, Alana was also charged in 1983 with the murder of North Oakland resident Marilyn Pigott, 23, who was found beaten to death with a hammer in her apartment. Alana was acquitted of the charge, the Mercury News reports.
He has been in violation of sex offender registration requirements since June and his current address is not listed in the registry.
While Alana has not yet been accused of having a hand in Coke's disappearance, he remains in custody on a parole violation, Watson said.
Investigators now believe that Lake Chabot near the Solano County Fairgrounds in Vallejo may be a key location in the search for Coke and are concentrating a massive search there tonight (Thursday) with the assistance of the Alameda County and Solano County sheriff's offices and the FBI.
Earlier Thursday, family, friends and coworkers of the missing woman announced a $100,000 reward to help locate her.
Anyone who may have seen Coke is asked to call the Oakland Police Department's missing persons unit at (510)-238-3641, Crime Stoppers of Oakland at (510)-777-8672, tip line at (510)-777-2805, toll-free tip hotline at (855)-TIPS-247, family and friends tip line at (415)-385-5190, or email tips to Findsandracoke@gmail.com.
Coke was last seen leaving her home in the 600 block of Aileen Street at about 8:30 p.m. Sunday. Family members said she left to meet with someone with information about the family's missing dog, and was expected back shortly.
She never returned, sparking a search by friends and family members both of the Oakland neighborhood where she lived and of the Richmond neighborhood where one of her two cellphones was located, according to her family.
Her 2007 Mini Cooper convertible was located about two miles from her home in the 800 block of 32nd Street on Monday.
According to her family, by using the "Find my iPhone app" they could track her zig-zagging all over the Bay Area before the phone was abandoned near the intersection of Macdonald and Wilson Avenues off of Interstate Highway 80 in Richmond.
Coke, an investigator at the federal public defender's office in Sacramento, has also been missing from work since her disappearance, which her coworkers said was uncharacteristic of her.
'Like' Rockridge Patch on Facebook and follow us on Twitter @RockridgCAPatch (yes, the "e" is missing from Rockridge...).
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