Authorities in Texas are searching for a woman who went missing while visiting friends in Houston.
Sydney Marquez, 24, was last seen on Dec. 11 in the 9100 block of Bellaire Boulevard, according to a bulletin from the Houston Police Department’s Missing Persons Unit, shared by the nonprofit Texas Center for the Missing.
Marquez, who is from El Paso, was in the Houston area to see friends when she disappeared, according to FOX affiliate KRIV.
Her father, Raul Marquez, said the vehicle she was driving was found abandoned on Bellaire Boulevard on Dec. 11, with the keys still inside. He also said she left behind her phone — something her family described as unusual for her — and relatives have since traveled from El Paso to Houston to help with the search.
“It’s been a nightmare ever since we found out my daughter was missing,” Raul said. “It’s been tough for the whole family.”
Family members told authorities they believe Marquez may be experiencing a mental illness and said they are concerned for her safety, according to the Texas Center for the Missing. Raul described his daughter as “a bright young lady” who was diagnosed with late-onset bipolar schizophrenia about a year ago, KRIV reported, adding that she had recently not been taking her medication, which he said affected her behavior.
Raul also believes his daughter may have boarded a METRO bus the night she disappeared, but noted that the bus’s camera systems were not working properly at the time.
“The best Christmas gift in the world is just to bring my daughter back,” he said, according to KRIV. “That’s all I want for Christmas.”
Marquez is described as a Hispanic woman who is 5-foot-4 and about 120 lbs., according to the Houston Police Department. She has brown eyes and red hair, and was last seen wearing a grey hoodie and pants, a beige shirt, and white tennis shoes.
