(This story has been updated to correct the date of the event.)
The Ventura County Sheriff’s Office plans to hold a first-of-its-kind event aimed at raising awareness for missing persons cases in Ojai April 26.
Missing in the Ojai Valley is set for 10 a.m to 3 p.m. at Nordhoff High School, 1401 Maricopa Highway. The sheriff’s office is contracted to provide police services to the city of Ojai and unincorporated areas of the Ojai Valley.
The event is open to the the public and focused on spreading awareness of missing person’s cases in the area. People who have been affected by the disappearance of a loved one are encouraged to attend, said sheriff’s Detective Chris Dyer.
The five-hour workshop was inspired by recent cases like Zyanya Valora’s, Dyer said. Valora, then 21, went missing June 25 from her home in Mira Monte, an unincorporated community in the Ojai Valley. She left her home in the 11000 block of North Ventura Avenue around 2 a.m. that day.
Valora’s family was personally invited by sheriff’s officials and will have a table there, said Demaris Dac, Valora’s mother. She will be handing out posters and raising awareness of her daughter’s case.
Separately, the family has organized a search party April 26, led by her husband and joined by friends and family, to look again for any signs of Valora in the area, Dac added.
Sheriff’s officials also will be presenting information about missing persons in the Ojai Valley dating as far back as the 1980s, said Dyer. They will also be showcasing techniques in the use of DNA. Families of missing persons are encouraged to bring medical and dental records, pictures and provide DNA samples, sheriff’s officials said.
The workshop will offer fingerprinting for children and vulnerable adults and gather and preserve information including a photograph, contact information and hand and palm prints, officials said.
Dyer said he hopes the event brings more attention to cases not just in the area but any missing person’s case in the country that people might have information about. The sheriff’s office hopes to hold these kinds of events throughout the county in the future, he added.
In 2023 the FBI’s Crime Information Center reported that over 563,000 people were reported missing in the United States, sheriff’s officials said.
Other recent cases include the missing Simi Valley couple Jose and Stephanie Perez. The couple last had contact with family on July 16, police previously reported. The pair is still missing, but the search is ongoing, said Simi Valley Police Detective Kevin VanFleet Wednesday.
Authorities are still searching for Ignacio Gonzalez, who went missing from his home in Port Hueneme on Feb. 2, 2024. Police are still in contact with his family but have not had any leads since the search was launched, said Port Hueneme Police Sgt. Jesus Chavez Thursday.
Ernesto Centeno Araujo covers breaking news for the Ventura County Star. He can be reached at ecentenoaraujo@vcstar.com.
This article originally appeared on Ventura County Star: First-of-its-kind event in Ojai aims to bring awareness to missing persons
Reporting by Ernesto Centeno Araujo, Ventura County Star / Ventura County Star
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