Crystal Marie Liel Danley

Crystal, circa 2017

  • Missing Since 06/18/2017
  • Missing From Modesto, California
  • Classification Endangered Missing
  • Sex Female
  • Race White
  • Date of Birth 01/08/1974 (50)
  • Age 43 years old
  • Height and Weight 5'7, 135 pounds
  • Medical Conditions Crystal was suffering from depression at the time of her disappearance and may have been suicidal.
  • Associated Vehicle(s) White 1990 Ford Taurus with the license plate number 4GHG377 (accounted for)
  • Distinguishing Characteristics Caucasian female. Black hair, brown eyes. Crystal has a tattoo of a rose and a dagger on her neck and a tattoo of an Indian woman on her left hip. Her ears are pierced.

Details of Disappearance

Crystal was last seen in San Francisco, California on June 18, 2017. After she argued with a family member in Modesto, California, she went to visit a San Francisco friend. She suddenly left her friend's home at 4:30 a.m. and never returned.

Crystal left without taking any money, and there's been no activity on her bank accounts since her disappearance. Her white 1990 Ford Taurus with the license plate number 4GHG377 was found later that month parked near Ocean Beach. It was unlocked, with her purse and keys under the front seat. There was no evidence of foul play.

Ocean Beach is on the shore of Morro Bay. Crystal's 22-year-old son, Avery Edward Danley, drowned in the bay in February 2016. In the weeks before she went missing, Crystal repeatedly said she felt guilty about her son's death and wanted to "be with Avery" in the ocean.

Because of the circumstances of her disappearance, Crystal's loved ones theorize she deliberately went into Morro Bay and drowned. An extensive search of the water turned up no sign of her, however.

She left behind two surviving children, aged 20 and 14, and she had plans to take a trip to Peru that summer and already purchased a plane ticket. Modesto police are investigating her case, which remains unsolved.

Investigating Agency

  • Modesto Police Department 209-572-9580

Updated 1 time since October 12, 2004. Last updated June 20, 2018; casefile added.