SANTA BARBARA, Calif. (KTLA) — The family of a TV anchor who went missing and was later found safe is calling her disappearance a private matter.
Paula Lopez, 48, works at KEYT in Santa Barbara and used to anchor in Los Angeles.
Sheriff’s deputies in Santa Barbara said her family contacted them on Wednesday morning, saying she could not be located.
Lopez is a longtime fixture in the community and is married to a Superior Court judge.
Deputies conducted a search in the air and on the ground using search dogs.
The rapid response raised questions about whether the family received favorable treatment.
News footage showed Lopez’s husband, Frank Ochoa, arriving at the home Wednesday night in his gray Lexus with what appeared to be a woman in the passenger’s seat.
At around 5:30 p.m. Wednesday, her family called Santa Barbara County Sheriff’s Public Safety Dispatch to report that Lopez was home safe.
When Deputies responded to her residence they confirmed she was there and no longer missing.
But authorities are not commenting on the reasons surrounding why Lopez went missing.
“Paula has been located,” a family spokesman told reporters on Wednesday night. “We’re not giving out any details right now.”
Lopez, who spent six years at KCAL-TV Channel 9 in Los Angeles, co-anchors the Santa Barbara station’s 11 p.m. broadcast.
She returned to KEYT in 1996 to spend more time with her family. She and her husband have three children.
25 Comments to “Family Not Saying How TV Anchor Went Missing”
February 27, 2013 at 5:17 PM
Any woman married to a Superior Court Judge that is missing is a real concern. I believe that there is more to this story that hasn't been told. My best wishes to her family, friends and KEYT
February 27, 2013 at 6:18 PM
Her family last spoke with her at 9:30am and they reported her missing after 30 mins at 10:00am?
February 27, 2013 at 7:02 PM
And she was safe at home by 6:30 p.m.
Maybe her family members were crowding her too much so she let her phone go to voicemail while she was at work.
February 27, 2013 at 8:48 PM
This is gonna get interesting. Menopause? Just sayin……!
February 28, 2013 at 8:02 AM
Menopause? Really?
February 28, 2013 at 8:32 AM
REALLY! Don’t underestimate the power it has on some folks. Heck, it’s a defense in murder trials.
February 28, 2013 at 8:56 AM
Oh absolutely, I remind my husband of that quite regularly.
February 28, 2013 at 10:46 AM
Is that you sweetheart?
February 28, 2013 at 3:28 PM
Got you worried now, don't I?
February 28, 2013 at 9:07 AM
I concur
February 27, 2013 at 11:18 PM
The TV bimbo was probably out and about messing around.
February 28, 2013 at 6:30 AM
and fell asleep
February 28, 2013 at 9:08 AM
Lol
February 28, 2013 at 8:04 AM
Or maybe she need a little time a space to think things over. The fact that the family freaked out so soon after she left makes me think she's probably had some issues of late. Sometimes we just need to get away.
February 28, 2013 at 9:08 AM
Exactly
February 28, 2013 at 9:31 AM
Look up Nadia Lockyer.
February 28, 2013 at 11:15 AM
The taxpayers are on the hook for the police search for this "disappearance". This is public record so the reasons will be made public anyways.
February 28, 2013 at 11:43 AM
How long you think it would take for us regular folks to get authorities to start searching? Judges wife and TV personality!……”Saddle Up Boys”.
February 28, 2013 at 3:25 PM
::giggling hysterically:: "us regular folks"?
February 28, 2013 at 4:06 PM
There is a girl name Megan Ganajian from La Crescenta/Tujunga who has been missing for two months and they still haven't started even looking for her. I guess you gotta know somebody to get looked for.
March 1, 2013 at 8:49 AM
Sorry, I didn't mean to imply that I didn't agree, I just found it amusing that Mark Justice considers himself "regular folk".
February 28, 2013 at 2:11 PM
"The rapid response raised questions about whether the family received favorable treatment."
Are you serious….of course they received favorable treatment…..ANYONE else would've been asked to wait for 24 hours before they can report the person missing!!
February 28, 2013 at 2:48 PM
Hmmm, looks like the 'lovely lady' needed some time alone? Marital problems??? Choose your answer.