Family pleads for answers as Santa Cruz County Sheriff’s Office searches for missing Utah woman

The brother of a Utah woman who has been missing in the area for nearly two weeks told Lookout on Tuesday that his family is panicked and doing what they can to help the Santa Cruz County Sheriff’s Office in its search. 

From last Thursday to Monday night, Danielle Staley’s sister and stepfather were in Santa Cruz and Aptos, where they met local residents who have been “amazing” and aided in their search efforts, Staley’s brother, Frankie Grey, said in a phone interview from his home in Utah. They helped pass out about 1,000 flyers and held a search party of about 20 people before returning home to Holladay, a Salt Lake City suburb. 

“Unfortunately, they had to come home empty-handed,” said Grey. “But there are people who are still there for her.”

Staley, 35, had been on a road trip in a van with her longtime romantic partner, whom Grey identified as 62-year-old Alx Nunez. The pair had been in the Santa Cruz area for about a week before Nunez reported Staley missing on Nov. 7. He told investigators that Staley didn’t return to their van after she attended a late-night group bonfire at Rio Del Mar State Beach. 

The couple’s van was parked at Rio Del Mar State Beach and Nunez told local media that Staley was at a group bonfire on the beach when he went to the van to sleep. When he woke up, she wasn’t there and her phone and belongings were left behind on the beach, the sheriff’s office said. Nunez reported her missing shortly after and has been cooperating with sheriff’s detectives, according to Santa Cruz County Sheriff Sgt. Zach West. Grey told Lookout that his sister and Nunez had been on-again-off-again romantically for more than a decade. 

West told Lookout on Tuesday night that the department is continuing to search all leads and at this point, investigators aren’t aware of any crime committed and therefore don’t have a suspect — including Nunez. 

West said the department’s search-and-rescue team and California State Parks rangers helped search the coastline and hillsides in the area. The sheriff’s department also used drones to get aerial views of the ocean, coastline and the wider region. The detectives are processing videos they’ve received from the security cameras at Rio Del Mar residences and businesses. 

The sergeant said investigators were also searching the van Staley and her partner were staying in but added that he couldn’t say anything yet about their findings. 

“They’re following up on every lead. They’re exhausting every avenue,” said West. “There’s not one piece of information that they’re not following up on.”

Grey said the sheriff’s office has been communicative with the family and is keeping in touch with Staley’s mother, April Miller. 

“There’s obviously a lot that they can’t tell us,” he said. 

Grey said he first learned that Staley was on a trip to California with Nunez on Sept. 23, when she called and excitedly told him she was on a beach. After learning she was with Nunez, Grey said he told her that really concerned him. He told Lookout that Nunez and Staley have had a tumultuous relationship, including domestic violence incidents, and that he doesn’t trust Nunez. 

In an interview with KSBW this week, Nunez said he had nothing to do with Staley’s disappearance. He described the night that she went missing and criticized Staley’s family. Among the people he recalled from the bonfire were a woman about 5-foot-6, weighing about 130 pounds, with a dog, and a man known as Santa John. Nunez described Staley’s family as “dysfunctional” and he said her mom left her in the streets due to her drug use. 

Nunez also confirmed that the couple had a history of domestic violence. The Central Coast television station asked Nunez about recent domestic violence issues — one in Los Angeles and one in Santa Cruz after they arrived here. 

“Absolutely, we’ve had problems and issues in the past, but you know what we work right through them,” he said. “That’s what all couples do.” 

Grey, and Nunez according to his KSBW interview, both said Staley struggled with drug use over the years, like heroin and meth, and that it caused strain between them. 

“Yeah, she relapsed. And that’s the truth,” Nunez said. “The reason why she was picked up here is because she illegally took my van. Took the vehicle. Took off with it. Because I confronted her about her relapse. She wasn’t too happy about it.” 

Grey told Lookout that he watched Nunez’s interview and disputes what he said. Grey said his family loves Staley and has tried to help her over the years. The family’s goal isn’t to slander anyone, he said; rather, their focus is to find Staley. 

“We have our own reasons for not necessarily believing what he’s saying,” said Grey. 

Grey said he’s been a “mess” since he learned about his sister’s disappearance. He said he and his family feel “absolutely terrible” not knowing where she is. 

“I’ve seen my mom, I’ve seen everybody actually break down a few times,” he said. “I cannot describe the amount of just the feeling of sick panic in your stomach.” 

Grey, 32, said Staley is an energetic, fun and caring person who would give anyone the shirt off her back. She loves cats, and loves to dress up — often in cat ears — for fun. He said one of his favorite memories of her is of when he was about 10 years old. They were riding home on rollerblades and a neighborhood boy was bullying Grey, calling him names. 

“With rollerblades on she kicked this guy in the nuts, it was the coolest thing ever,” he said. “She was that type of person that she would stand up for, for her family. I hate that I’m saying that in past tense, that’s scary.” 

Grey said his family is planning their next steps to find Staley and that he might come to Santa Cruz next week to help in the search. In the meantime, he said the support from Santa Cruz community members has been a bright spot. One business offered to print flyers with Staley’s picture for free and another laminated them free of charge to make them waterproof when it was raining. 

“It’s been amazing to see people come together for some random girl that was there for a week,” he said. “The support that they’re sending to my family. It’s important to us. It means a lot.” 

The sheriff’s office is asking anyone with tips about Staley and the investigation to call 831-471-1121.

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