Detectives from the San Diego County Sheriff’s Department are searching for a 14-year-old girl from Alpine last seen more than a week ago. This is the second time the teen has disappeared in the past seven months.
Venicia Ortiz was last seen on Feb. 26. Detectives say she may be in the company of her 28-year-old boyfriend, Edgar Morales, and may have run away from home.
Detectives say Morales is known to hang out along Imperial Avenue and 24th Street in San Diego’s Grant Hill area, as well as National City and Chula Vista.
According to detectives, Ortiz ran away once before – back in August 2013 when she lived in Chula Vista – but eventually turned up after media outlets aired her photograph.
Officials are hoping that getting the teen’s picture out there again can help bring her home safely.
Detectives say neither Ortiz nor her boyfriend have been answering their phones. At this point, there is no active search for the runaway, officials said Friday, but the minor does need to come home.
The teenager is described as Hispanic, with brown eyes and brown hair with highlights in it. Her ears are pierced. She’s 5-foot-3 and approximately 160 pounds.
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Anyone with information on the whereabouts of Ortiz should contact the sheriff’s department at (858) 565-5200 and refer to her case number, #14110286.
