The Blaine County Sheriff's Office is investigating the disappearance of a 24-year-old Filipino woman who has been missing from the Wood River Valley for the past two weeks.
"Our main concern is her whereabouts, to make sure she's safe," sheriff's Lt. Ron Taylor said Monday.
Lenelyn Ordinario Rafael was reported missing on Wednesday, July 25. She had been employed as a nanny at a home in the mid-valley until her disappearance.
Taylor said Rafael is suspected of stealing $600 and a cell phone from the home where she lived and worked. He said foul play is not suspected at this time, but the woman's disappearance is puzzling because she left her passport behind.
Taylor said it is uncertain whether or not Rafael left other possessions at the home where she was employed.
He said authorities have traced cell phone calls believed made by Rafael to the Philippines and to Pennsylvania, but they suspect Rafael is now in California.
"We know she made these phone calls, so we want to make sure she is safe," he said.
A missing person bulletin issued by the sheriff's office describes Rafael as having a light brown complexion, brown eyes and black hair. She is described as 5 feet 4 inches tall and weighing 120 pounds. Anyone with information about her whereabouts is asked to contact investigating officers Deputy Connie Burrell or Detective Steve Harkins at (208) 788-5555, ext. 5.
The bulletin further says that Rafael has lived in the United States and worked as a nanny for about one year. She is in the United States on a visa and has no other form of identification. The bulletin says she has no family in the United States.
"We do not suspect foul play or that she was abducted," Taylor said.
Lenelyn Ordinario Rafael
