Chandrayaan-3: India's lunar lander Vikram searches for safe Moon landing spot
Day after Luna-25 crash, India space agency says lander trying to find area without boulders or deep trenches.
2023-08-21 13:56
MLB takes over Padres broadcasts Wednesday after Bally misses payment
Major League Baseball will take over broadcasts of San Diego Padres games beginning Wednesday after Diamond Sports missed a rights fees payment and let the grace period expire
2023-05-31 10:56
Is Kai Cenat to be blamed for NYC riot? JiDion backs Twitch king amid arrest following Playstation giveaway controversy: 'It's group mentality'
JiDion asserted that not all of Kai Cenat's supporters took part in the violence but also noted that someone has to take the blame for the situation
2023-08-07 14:24
Smash Mouth frontman Steve Harwell dies at 56
Steve Harwell, the longtime frontman of the Grammy-nominated pop rock band Smash Mouth, has died
2023-09-05 00:49
‘We believe she is in danger’: Desperate family appeals for help finding mother-of-two who disappeared during roadtrip
Nikki Alcaraz vanished without trace while on a roadtrip from her home in Tennessee to California with her boyfriend Tyler Stratton. Ms Alcaraz, 33, was last seen in the New Mexico town of Moriarty on 6 May. Authorities and her desperate family are appealing for information about her whereabouts. The missing person case has drawn comparisons to the Gabby Petito investigation after sheriff’s deputies in Torrance County pulled the couple over after receiving reports that Mr Stratton had assaulted Ms Alcaraz. The officers let them go without pressing criminal charges after Mr Stratton claimed he had also been hit. Here’s what we know about the case. The trip Nikki Alcaraz, a mother of two also known as Nikki Hernandez, left her home in Cheatham County, Tennessee, in her 2013 Jeep Wrangler with Tennessee plates in late April bound for Orange County, to visit family. Ms Alcaraz was travelling with her boyfriend Mr Stratton and a pet dog. On 4 May, sheriff’s deputies in Torrance County, New Mexico, pulled the couple over after receiving a report that he had struck Ms Alcaraz. Mr Stratton told authorities that he had also been hit, and both declined to press charges. Authorities have since released photos showing Ms Alcaraz with a black eye, cuts on her face and severe bruising on her arms after the alleged assault. “He beat her up pretty badly,” her brother Josh Alcaraz told Fox5. “A truck driver had to pull him off of her, call the police, the police picked him up, took him a couple exits down and dropped him off. She was diagnosed with a traumatic brain injury, and a broken hand or wrist.” Ms Alcaraz was taken to a Super 8 motel in the town of Moriarty. A friend travelled from California and stayed with her overnight at the motel. The plan was for the friend to take her back to California. On 6 May, Ms Alcaraz left the motel and told the friend she was going to try to find her boyfriend. This was the last time she has been seen alive, the woman’s family said. Her sister Toni Alcaraz told WKRN that she received a text on 8 May saying she was in Arizona, and planned to continue the trip to California. She hasn’t heard anything since then. Ms Alcaraz told the news site it was highly unusual not to hear from her for an extended period. Ms Alcaraz’s licence plate was picked up near Flagstaff, Arizona, on 9 May. But her phone has reportedly been switched off, and no further sightings have been reported. Missing person investigation Toni Alcaraz said she filed a missing persons report in New Mexico as that was where she was last seen. Josh Alcaraz said he feared that his sister’s vehicle might have broken down in the desert or come off the road. "We would like everybody to keep their eyes open, and if you see the Jeep, if you see him, if you see her, call somebody. Call the police," he told Fox5. Officials in Cheatham County, Tennessee, are working with law enforcement agencies in New Mexico and California to try to locate Ms Alcaraz. “Due to a history of domestic assault we believe she is in danger,” the Cheatham County Sheriff’s Office said in a Facebook post appealing for information. District Attorney General Ray Crouch told WKRN his office had requested a nationwide extradition for Mr Stratton, who is also missing. Mr Stratton is wanted on an unrelated arrest warrant for theft and begged for the public’s assistance. Family say they are holding onto the hope of finding Ms Alcaraz alive. “If you see the Jeep, if you see him, if you see her, call somebody,” Josh Alcaraz told Fox5. “Obviously, worst-case scenario is very present in the back of my mind. I’m trying to hold out hope.” Ms Alcaraz, who is also known as Nikki Cunningham, is 5’6” with brown eyes and black/brown hair. She also has several distinctive tattoos. Anyone with information about her whereabouts is asked to call police in Moriarty on 505-832-6060 or 505-834-2705. Mr Stratton’s family have reportedly not filed a missing person report, according to online reports. Gabby Petito comparisons The allegations of assault on a cross-country road trip have been drawing comparisons to the 2021 disappearance and murder of vlogger Gabby Petito. Petito set off from her home in New York in July that year with her boyfriend Brian Laundrie. The couple was pulled over in Utah by officers from the Moab Police Department on 12 August after receiving reports that Laundrie had struck Petito. They were allowed to continue separately after Laundrie claimed he had been hit by Petito. After a nationwide search and international media attention, Petito’s remains were found in the Grand Teton National Park in Wyoming in September. Laundrie later shot himself in the head and left a suicide note confessing to killing Petito. Petito’s family is suing the Moab Police Department for failing to follow the law and protect her during the traffic stop. An independent review of the domestic assault incident found the officers had made several mistakes, and should have been classified as a domestic assault. Petito’s family are also suing Laundrie’s parents Chris and Roberta for emotional distress. Read More Search for missing woman who vanished on cross-country roadtrip with her boyfriend sparks Gabby Petito comparisons Bombshell letter where Brian Laundrie’s mother vowed to ‘dispose of body’ is given to Gabby Petito’s parents Louisiana high school graduate who fell off boat in Bahamas is lost at sea as Coast Guard calls off search
2023-05-30 06:27
Who is Chepial Williams? Georgia mom-of-three regrets buying handgun after her youngest son, 2, shoots himself
Chepial Williams tragically lost her toddler son due to an accidental handgun discharge
2023-10-21 21:19
In US heartland, activists press Native Americans to vote
With an eye on the 2024 presidential election, Codie Horse-Topetchy is feeling jubilant. She just registered 50 people to vote at the Comanche Nation Fair in...
2023-10-25 09:57
UN says nearly 200,000 displaced in Gaza, water shortages expected
GENEVA The United Nations humanitarian office said on Tuesday that nearly 200,000 people or nearly a tenth of
2023-10-10 17:49
Delhi pollution: Indian Supreme Court's 40-year quest to clean foul air
The Supreme Court has a mixed record in cleaning up pollution in India's capital.
2023-11-27 08:50
Donald Trump is testing the resilience of Iowa's evangelical voters
Donald Trump is testing the resilience of his evangelical support in Iowa, a key constituency that could solidify -- or slow -- his march to the Republican presidential nomination.
2023-09-19 07:28
Bill Cosby faces new sexual assault lawsuit from former Playboy model
Victoria Valentino claims Cosby raped her after giving her and a friend pills in 1969.
2023-06-02 21:15
Millennial Leader Takes Over Broke and Crime-Wracked Ecuador
Distressed debt, political assassinations, anti-mining unrest and soaring crime: Ecuador’s problems would be daunting for an experienced statesman.
2023-11-24 02:49
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