The husband of a California woman who went missing in 2024 has been arrested in connection with her death, authorities said on Wednesday. 

Nikki Cheng Saelee-McCain's family reported that they had not heard from her or seen her since May 18, 2024. 

The Shasta County District Attorney's Office said Nikki's phone was last connected to the network at her home just after 3 a.m. on May 18, 2024. Witness statements and forensic data showed that she was at home with her husband, Tyler McCain, during the early morning hours that day.

The Shasta County Sheriff's Office said it located Nikki's Chevy Avalanche near the Shasta and Tehama county line a week later. Prosecutors described "an overwhelming odor of decomposition" coming from the truck's bed, which had an enclosed covering. Prosecutors said a white sheet with apparent blood and various staining was located in the truck's bed. 

The blood from the sheet was later confirmed to belong to Nikki. Prosecutors added that further evidence recovered from inside the vehicle and the truck bed "provided overwhelming support that Tyler McCain was the primary source of DNA on items unrelated to blood or bodily fluids." 

Detectives then learned through a confidential report that Tyler admitted to killing Nikki after a domestic violence incident, prosecutors said. 

In March 2025, detectives, along with FBI and Homeland Security Agents, served a search warrant at Nikki's home in Anderson. After serving that search warrant, the sheriff's office ruled Nikki was the victim of a homicide.

On Wednesday, the sheriff's office announced it arrested Tyler in connection with her death and disappearance. He was booked into the Shasta County Jail for murder and is being held with no bail. 

Shasta County prosecutors said they filed a murder charge against Tyler, along with a special circumstance that the murder was committed with the intent to prevent testimony. 

Prosecutors said they also refiled domestic violence charges from a December 2023 case, including charges of corporal injury to a spouse, false imprisonment, criminal threats and assault with force likely to cause great bodily injury. He will also be charged with possession of a firearm and ammunition after a criminal protective order, forgery and various traffic violations, prosecutors said. 

In the December 2023 case, prosecutors said Nikki filed a domestic violence charge against Tyler. They said she was contacted at a local hospital, where a deputy observed a black eye and other facial trauma. Nikki said she was physically assaulted by Tyler for about three hours just days before, and that she feared for her life, prosecutors said. The domestic violence charges were later dismissed. 

Shasta County District Attorney Stephanie A. Bridgett addressed concerns surrounding the dismissal of the domestic violence charges.

"Second, the dismissal of the domestic violence case was necessary because we would not have been able to prove the case without her testimony, without also having to prove that Tyler McCain caused Nikki's disappearance," Bridgett said. 

Bridgett said the homicide investigation would have been compromised in July of 2024.

In April 2025, Tyler was pulled over after he was seen unable to stay in the lanes and was seen throwing objects out the window. Detectives located his wallet. Inside his wallet was Nikki's California driver's license, which had partial burn damage to it, prosecutors said. 

To this day, Nikki's body has not been located. Prosecutors said California laws do not require her body to be located to prove the crime of murder, and efforts will continue to locate her body.

In a court hearing on Friday, Tyler pleaded not guilty to all the charges. He is being held without bail.