Missing Woman With Dementia Found Safe On Trail In Marin County

NOVATO, CA — The Marin County Sheriff's Office Search and Rescue team found a woman with dementia who went missing early Monday morning in Novato.

Virginia Bucoy, 79, walked away from her house in the Posada Del Sol area some time Monday morning, according to the Novato Police Department. Her husband woke up at 3 a.m. and discovered she had left their home.

Police said the Marin County Sheriff's Office assisted early on in the investigation and searched the open space and residential area near Bucoy's home. The Marin SAR team had team members on foot and bicycles, used search dogs and deployed drones.

The Marin SAR team found Bucoy around 7:45 a.m. behind a condominium complex on a trail that runs to open space off Posada Del Sol.

"Virginia had been down on the trail for several hours, prompting the need for a medical rescue," Novato police said.

"She was found down and very cold," the Marin SAR team reported on social media.

Bucoy was taken to the hospital, where she was reunited with her husband. Her health was in good condition, the team said.

Novato police and firefighters, Marin County Sheriff's deputies, Marin County Openspace rangers and 21 SAR team members, including two K-9 teams, participated in the search and rescue efforts.

"This was a great outcome of a large, multi-agency effort," the team said.