Cops: Calif. woman's New Year's Day disappearance suspicious

Stockton, Calif. -- The disappearance of a California woman last seen early New Years' Day at her Stockton apartment is suspicious, according to Stockton Police.

Carolina Adkins, 26, was last seen around 1:15 a.m. Jan. 1 after saying she was going for a walk, police say. No one has heard from her since.

The missing case is suspicious because family says it's unusual for her to be out of touch for so long, Officer Joe Silva, a Stockton police spokesman, told 48 Hours' Crimesider. She also left several personal items at her Stockton home, located about 50 miles south of Sacramento.

"She's been gone a few days, she doesn't have a pattern of being reported as a missing person, and she left some of her belongings - including her purse and her cell phone - at the apartment," Silva told Crimesider.

Police are interviewing neighbors and family members, including the woman's husband, Silva said. Police don't currently have a suspect or person of interest in the case, he said.

Husband Joe Shepard tells the Stockton Record that the couple hosted a party on New Year's Eve, and that at about 1 a.m. Thursday after the guests had left, his wife said she wanted another alcoholic beverage. He said he stopped her from having another drink.

The couple has two young children, a six-year-old girl and a five-year-old boy, reports the paper.

"It's just eating me up," Shepard told the paper. "I've known her since I was in the seventh grade. She never does this and if she was to be gone for a day or two, she'll have her phone with her."

Police are continuing interviews, spreading the word on social media and encouraging anyone with more information about Adkins' disappearance to contact Crimestoppers at 209-403-0545.

Adkins is described as 5 feet 2 inches tall and weighs 110 pounds. She has brown hair, brown eyes and a medium complexion. She was last seen wearing a brown jacket, blue jeans and brown boots. She has numerous tattoos and a pierced tongue.