Former Cal State Long Beach Missing Student Found

By City News Service

A 24-year-old Placentia woman who had been missing for more than a week was found Friday in the Angeles National Forest by a sheriff's search-and-rescue team.

Shameca Lewis Johnson “has been found,” Placentia police Detective Corinne Loomis said just before noon. “She is in good health. My understanding is she is on her way back to Orange County.”

A cab driver called Fullerton police late Thursday or early today saying he saw media reports about Johnson and recalled giving her a ride up to the Angeles National Forest on Aug. 20, the day she left her home, Loomis said.

That tip, “coupled with sightings of people up there,” helped investigators determine where to search, for the Cal State Long Beach graduate, Loomis said.

Witnesses came forward Thursday and said they had encountered a woman who appeared to be confused and wandering in the forest. The search that began Thursday night involved aircraft, ground units and K-9s, according to Los Angeles County sheriff's Sgt. Mark Slater of the Crescenta Valley station.