CRESCENT CITY, Fla. – Two days after the family of Nyeisha Nelson reported her missing to the Putnam County Sheriff’s Office, that agency is asking the public for help locating the 20-year-old woman.
According to family members, Nelson picked up her daughter on Feb. 10 and the next morning took her child to school. Deputies said a neighbor reported seeing Nelson in the yard of her residence on Ohio Street in Crescent City before leaving in her 2008 grey Honda Accord wearing a white T-shirt, grey shorts and carrying a purse.
Family members said Nelson normally stays in contact several times a day but has not made reached out to anyone since Feb. 11.
“If anybody’s seen my baby, can you call please contact the Putnam County Sheriff’s Office or me,” Nelson’s mother, Chasity Nelson, said at a Friday afternoon news conference. “You can be anonymous. I just want to know where my baby is.”
Sheriff’s Office Col. Joe Wells said Nyeisha Nelson is well-known and was self-employed as a hairdresser. He said there has been an outpouring of support from the community.
The Sheriff’s Office told News4Jax there was no sign of foul play at her home and there has been no activity on her bank card.
Nelson’s vehicle was found abandoned in a wooded area off Old U.S. 17 not far from Crescent City. It was processed for evidence and K9 units searched the area, but there was no sign of her.
“The fact that it is concerning,” Wells said. “We remain hopeful, as I know her family does, and we won’t give up hope no matter how many days, weeks, months this takes to bring her home.”
Wells said it’s not unusual for several days to go by before healthy adults are reported missing. He said detectives and interviewed multiple witnesses and collected multiple pieces of evidence.
Anyone with information as to Nelson’s whereabouts or if they have seen her at any time since Feb. 11 is asked to call 911 or, to remain anonymous, call CrimeStoppers of Northeast Florida at 1-888-277-8477.