This browser does not support the Video element.
Chantel Brooks: Family and friends search for missing Fairfield woman
Family and friends of Chantel Brooks took their efforts to Oakland, hoping a new clue as to her whereabouts might provide some answers.
FAIRFIELD, Calif. - Friends and family of a missing Fairfield woman brought their search efforts to East Oakland on Friday, hanging flyers and searching for clues more than a month after her disappearance.
Chantel Brooks was last seen on July 17.
The search efforts shifted to the area of 55th Avenue and Foothill Boulevard in East Oakland after a License Plate Reader (FLOCK) camera detected her black Infiniti SUV, license plate 9SBB134, in the neighborhood.
What we know
Foul play suspected:
Loved ones are desperately searching for answers, stating that they fear the worst.
Fairfield police have confirmed they suspect foul play in Brooks' disappearance, though authorities have not publicly revealed what led them to that conclusion.
However, Brooks' family members reported finding alarming conditions inside her home. Relatives who entered her Fairfield apartment said the space showed clear signs of a violent struggle.
The family stated that police executed a search warrant at the apartment, which Brooks shared with her boyfriend for about a year.
Relatives noted that the boyfriend fled the residence with a suitcase shortly after Brooks was last seen.
History of domestic violence alleged
The backstory:
Close friends allege that the relationship was marked by ongoing physical abuse. Ericka Vaughn, a friend of Brooks, said she called police three times over the past six months to report domestic violence and request welfare checks.
Vaughn said that the boyfriend had previously physically harmed Brooks, including an incident around July 4 where he allegedly struck her with a liquor bottle.
She expressed fear that a physical altercation between the couple escalated prior to Brooks' disappearance.
Surveillance footage captured some of the last known sightings of Brooks on the day she vanished.
Cameras showed her arriving at and leaving her workplace at a hotel in San Francisco's Tenderloin neighborhood, as well as a later visit to a CVS pharmacy near her home in Fairfield.
On August 13, friends and family gathered for a vigil on her birthday, holding onto those final images.
Police investigation and upcoming update
What's next:
Fairfield police have not named a suspect or official person of interest in the case.
Investigators stated they have executed multiple search warrants and continue to actively investigate every lead.
Department officials announced they plan to release additional information regarding the case during a press conference on Monday.
The Source: Chantel Brooks' family and friends, Fairfield Police Department