Southern California police are looking for an elderly couple and their dog, who went missing from their home on a nudist ranch over the weekend.
Redlands police say Daniel Menard, 79, suffers from dementia and is diabetic. Neighbors also worry because the cane his 73-year-old wife, Stephanie Menard, uses to get around was later located in the couple’s home.
Police said the missing pair and their pup were last seen in the Olive Dell community, roughly 65 miles east of Los Angeles, around 10 a.m. on Saturday.
“The Menards’ unlocked vehicle was located down the road from their residence the same day,” the Redlands Police Department wrote on Facebook. “Stephanie Menard’s purse was located inside of her residence along with her and Daniel’s cellphones. The Menards’ dog, a small white Shih Tzu named Cuddles, is also missing.”
A friend who reported the couple unaccounted for expressed concern to ABC News because the Menards are part of a possible lawsuit against the nudist ranch. She said the pair were being harassed over pending litigation of an unspecified nature.
Wilkerson, who described the couple as “very sweet people” without “a mean bone in their body,” doesn’t think her friends would have left their personal belongings behind before leaving for several days.
Olive Dell describes itself online as a “family nudist resort” that serves as an RV park. Long and short term rentals are available. It’s unclear if the Menards were expressly associated with nudist activity.
Authorities are asking for the public’s help in searching for the Menards and their dog.
