Where is Nichole Russell? Alabama woman, 25, missing after stopping to help toddler walking alone on interstate
HOOVER, ALABAMA: A woman went missing after calling 911 and informing that she saw a child walking unaccompanied on the side of Interstate-459 South. The woman is identified as 25-year-old Carlethia “Carlee” Nichole Russell who went missing around 9.30 pm local time on Thursday.
As per Hoover Police Department’s post on Facebook, Nichole called 911 at 9.34 pm to inform about the child. Just after calling 911, she got down from the car to check on the child and called her relative. While the line remained open, the relative said that they lost contact with Nichole. The officer after coming to the site found Nichole missing and there was no trace of any child. They, however, found her belongings in the car and the engine left on ignition.
Nichole is 5 feet 4 inches tall and is believed to be about 150 to 160 lbs. She was last seen wearing a black t-shirt, black pants, and white Nike shoes, according to the Hoover police Facebook post. A reward of $25,000 has been announced for whoever can give any information about her.
‘She was so close’
Russell’s mother Talitha Russell said to the local newspaper Alabama.com, that Nichole, after leaving her part-time workplace The Woodhouse Day Spa at the Summit, stopped by Taziki’s at the Colonnade to pick up food. While she was leaving Taziki’s, Nichole was talking to her mother at 9.19 pm. Later, Talitha reveals, Nichole was talking to her brother’s girlfriend when she was passing through the Interstate and revealed to her that she saw an unaccompanied child.
Talitha described, “She called 911 when she pulled over,’’ before adding, “She got out of the car. I think she probably let her guard down thinking 911 would be there in a second.” She continued to elaborate, “My son’s girlfriend heard her asking the child, ‘Are you Ok?” However, mysteriously, there was no reply from the child. Nichole’s mother continues, “She never heard the child say anything but then she heard our daughter scream.” “From there all you hear on her phone is background noise from the interstate,” added Talitha.
Chillingly enough, all of her belongings were left in the car with the engine left running. Talith said, “Her car door was open, the engine was running, and they found her phone on the ground, along with her wig and her hat,’’ and added, “Her purse was still in the car. Her Apple watch was in her purse and her Air Pods as well.”
While the police is still searching the leads, Talitha said that a trucker was passing by along I-459 and described what he reported. “He saw her red car with the door open and he saw a grey car with a tall brown-skinned man with khaki shorts on leaning over in the car,’’ and added, “The police did find some tire tracks in the grass.” Unfortunately, since the area wasn’t muddy, the vehicle type could not be determined, “They said because it was not a muddy area, they were not able to determine what type of vehicle it could have been.” Talitha mourned her daughter got missing so close to their home which she shares with her parents, “She was so close.”
'We have a myriad of resources'
The Hoover Police Department said in a Press Conference on Friday afternoon that they have not received any child missing reports from the area. The police have said that they would not be sticking to just one theory and would be searching for every possibility. ”We currently are investigating every possibility,’’ Lt Daniel Lowe of the Hoover Police Department said. “We’re certainly leaving nothing off the table.”
Adding that all the leads were assigned to an investigator, he said, “We have a myriad of resources. Everything we have at the Hoover Police Department, in addition to our partners, is involved in this investigation right now.”
Since Nichole is too old for an Amber Alert, her family is advocating for issuing an Ashanti Alert in her case. An Ashanti Alert is issued for a person who is deemed too old for an Amber Alert and too young for a Silver Alert. Ashanti Alert is named after Ashanti Billie when a 19-year-old woman was abducted and killed in 2017 in Virginia. Lowe, however, said Nichoole’s missing case has been reported to Alabama Law Enforcement Agency, who will now decide upon the matter.