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Alicia Navarro was 14 when she left her home near 45th Avenue and Rose Lane in Glendale on Sept. 15, 2019. She left a note saying she was leaving but would return. But a year later, her mother, Jessica Nuñez, has heard no communication from her daughter, who is still missing.

Nuñez joined Glendale police to talk about the case of her missing autistic daughter on Tuesday, the firstanniversary of the teen’s disappearance. 

“Today is an anniversary, and it is not a good anniversary,” Nuñez said, “It is one year with no answers to where my daughter is.”

On Sept. 20, Alicia will turn 16 years old. 

“We are hoping someone out there will give her family the gift of her safe return,” Glendale police spokesperson Jose Miguel Santiago said in a statement ahead of the event.

A gamer who spent time chatting with friends

Alicia attended Bourgade Catholic High School in Phoenix on both Sept. 11 and 12, 2019.

Initially, school was not an easy concept for Alicia, according to Nuñez. This was in part due to her diagnosis as “high-functioning” on the autism spectrum. The family hired a behavior coach in 2017 to help Alicia through the challenges ofmanaging her autism in a school environment.

Nuñez explained that Alicia was warming up to the school and the friends she made in her classes.

“She was really happy to get into Bourgade Catholic School with her friends,” Nuñez said. “I mean she was waking up on her own, by herself. I would always comb her hair before she left for school.”

Nuñez explained that she always encouraged her daughter to be social with her friends.

“I was never the mom that was strict with her friends. I kept telling her, ‘Why don’t you go out,’ like my goal was to get her out of the house,” Nuñez said.

After classes, she came home and had interactions with her friends online through text messages and online video game services, such as Minecraft.

“She likes to game, and she is very accomplished. It is probably one of her main things that she would like to do,” said Sgt. Patrick Beumler, who is in charge of the Alicia Navarro investigation.

She stayed home from school to spend time with mom, then was gone

On Sept. 13, 2019, Alicia asked her mom if she could stay home from school due to anxiety. Nuñez granted the request.

“I let her because I did not want to pressure her because school was a big change for her,” Nuñez said.

Alicia stayed home from school, and spent most of the time in her room, according to the report. She did not have any interaction with friends but, according to Nuñez, the two of them had a great day.

“I took her to get her eyebrows threaded and then we went to a chocolate factory. I mean she was really happy that day,” Nuñez said with tears streaming down her cheeks, “She was laughing, I don’t understand it.”

About 1 a.m. on Sept. 15, 2019, Alicia asked her mom what time she was going to bed. At some point between when Nuñez went to sleep and woke up the next morning, Alicia left. 

She left a handwritten note in her bedroom saying, “I ran away. I will be back, I swear. I’m sorry. -Alicia.”

The note stated that she was running away, but also that she would return. However, Alicia is still missing, and has not made any form of communication since her disappearance. When Alicia left, she brought her cellphone and silver Apple MacBook.

“She was no longer on social media. She was no longer on texting or gaming applications,” said Beumler.

It was silence. 

Nuñez and Alicia’s stepfather reported Alicia missing in the morning on Sept. 16, 2019. 

Officers arrived at the residence to search for any additional information and then notified the Glendale Police Department missing persons detectives.

Days later, no contact on her birthday

On Sept. 20, 2019, Alicia turned 15 years old. She did not make any contact with any friends or family members.

Nuñez said she was confused, and could not understand why her daughter left.

“We didn’t fight. There was no reason for her to leave. We even had plans for her birthday. My family was going to come and we were going to celebrate. I already ordered the cake,” Nuñez said.

Initially, Glendale police issued a digital billboard on Loop 101 to draw attention to the missing girl. 

They also issued a Silver Alert for Alicia, due to her diagnosis of autism. 

Nuñez said she has contributed to the investigations in any way she can. Although police have not found any significant leads in her case and have not been able to confirm tips about Alicia sightings that were real, Nuñez has gone out to look for her on the streets. 

Searching for her daughter has taken a toll on Nuñez’s mental health, and still does.

“At the beginning, there would be tips, and I would go out at night looking for her. That’s when I found out what the nightlife out here looks like … I saw these kids on drugs, prostitutes, and all that. There were nights that I couldn’t sleep after looking for her.”

Dateline episode, podcasts, viral TikTok videos explore case 

Alicia’s case received national attention since the investigation into her disappearance began. “Dateline” reported in March that Nuñez feared her daughter had been lured away by an online predator and that the young girl’s safety may be even more threatened as COVID-19 spread throughout the world.

Additionally, several national podcasts have aired episodes about Alicia to draw attention to her disappearance, according to Glendale Police Department spokesman Sgt. Randy Stewart.

Nuñez said she has been working through social media to spread the word and create awareness about her missing daughter.

“It’s my entire life now. My goal is for this case to not go dead. I even opened TikTok, and I am really happy with the outcome I have received with the TikTok community. I have close to 60,000 followers that now know about my daughter,” Nuñez said. Some videos on her TikTok account @findalicianavarro have been viewed more than 1 million times. 

Glendale police ask anyone who sees Alicia to call 911

Stewart said they are still working tirelessly on the case. He mentioned that a big part of keeping it open is receiving tips for possible sightings of Alicia.

“We have utilized GSTV (Gas Station Television). Nearly 200 of them throughout the state are running ads,” Stewart said. 

Effective Tuesday, animated billboards will run for 8 seconds every minute on Arizona highways in hopes that someone can provide a tip on Alicia’s whereabouts. The National Center for Missing and Exploited Children will also have Alicia’s photo shown on gas pump screens, police said.

One of the most difficult things about the investigation is that tips come in much later than necessary or they are posted on social media but police are not notified. In order to act fast, the Glendale Police Department is asking that if people see Alicia to please contact 911 immediately.

Nuñez is asking for people to have compassion, and to send in any information.

“I need to know where my daughter is. There is not a day I don’t think of her,” she said. “And Alicia, if you are hearing this, just know that I love you, you know that I do, and I am not mad. I just want to know that you are okay, Alicia, that’s all.”

Republic reporter Emily Wilder contributed to this article. 

Reach breaking news reporter Katelyn Keenehan at [email protected] or follow her on Twitter @KatelynKeenehan.

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