Debra Elizabeth Puente

Puente, circa 2017; Puente's car

  • Missing Since 03/28/2017
  • Missing From San Diego, California
  • Classification Endangered Missing
  • Sex Female
  • Race White
  • Date of Birth 12/17/1966 (57)
  • Age 50 years old
  • Height and Weight 5'4, 120 pounds
  • Clothing/Jewelry Description A t-shirt and jeans.
  • Associated Vehicle(s) Black four-door 2013 Hyundai with the California license plate number 6XRP212 (accounted for)
  • Distinguishing Characteristics Caucasian female. Brown hair, blue eyes. Puente's nickname is Debi, and some accounts spell her name "Deborah." She has a large mole on her left cheekbone under her eye, and scars on her leg. Her ears are pierced.

Details of Disappearance

Puente was last seen driving away from the Longhorn Bar & Grill near Friars and Mission Gorge Roads between 10:00 and 11:00 p.m. on March 28, 2017. She had gone out with friends after work. As they were leaving, Puente told her friends she had been fighting with her live-in boyfriend and wanted to drive around for awhile to give him time to leave the house before she got home. She has never been heard from again.

Her vehicle, a black four-door 2013 Hyundai with the California license plate number 6XRP212, was found abandoned. It was parked illegally at the end of a dead-end road at the cliffs in the 5000 block of Santa Cruz Avenue near Bacon Street in Ocean Beach, California on April 5. Her wallet, keys, identification, shoes, and socks were locked inside the vehicle.

The car had three parking tickets on it; the first time it was ticketed was 6:00 a.m. on March 29. A photo of it is posted with this case summary. Puente was a regular patron at some bars in Ocean Beach, and she has previously been comfortable making friends with homeless people and travelers.

It's uncharacteristic of Puente to leave without warning or to not show up at her job, which she had held for about fifteen years. She lived with her boyfriend and his brother at the time she went missing. Although Puente's family was suspicious of her boyfriend, he did have an alibi and he passed a polygraph, so he was ruled out as a suspect in her case. Her disappearance remains unsolved.

Investigating Agency

  • San Diego Police Department 619-531-2844

Updated 3 times since October 12, 2004. Last updated November 15, 2021; details of disappearance updated.