Navy Searches for Sailor Who Vanished at Norfolk

The U.S. Navy and Virginia State Police have launched a search for a 21-year-old sailor who disappeared the morning of May 29 after last being seen at her barracks in Miller Hall at Naval Station Norfolk.

At the behest of the Naval Criminal Investigative Service, Virginia State Police issued Tuesday a "critically missing adult alert" regarding Angelina Petra Resendiz.

She is described as 5 feet tall and weighing 110 pounds. She has brown eyes and black hair. The alert said the NCIS determined her disappearance posed "a credible threat" to her health and safety.

Resendiz is a culinary specialist assigned to the USS James E. Williams guided missile destroyer. Resendiz, a Texas native, reported to the Williams in February 2024 after enlisting in the Navy in August 2023, according to Stars and Stripes.

"The Navy is cooperating fully with the investigation. Our top priority is the safety and welfare of our sailors," a spokesperson for the commander of Naval Surface Forces told Stars and Stripes.

Resendiz's mother, Esmeralda Castle, who lives in Texas, told WVEC-TV in Hampton, Virginia, that her daughter is very kind, very loving." Resendiz's family described her as a fun and kind person who is dedicated to the Navy. Her mother, who calls her Angie, said he daughter never goes a day without talking with her family.

"Her and my sister have a 400-day streak on Snapchat," Castle said. "Every single day she talks to somebody. She talks to family, or she will talk to a friend."

But when Castle didn't hear from her daughter last week and friends said she missed work, she knew something wasn't right. She could not reach Resendiz by phone, so she contacted Navy officials.

"She just stopped existing Thursday," Castle said. "She's spent no money, made no calls. She just stopped. She disappeared.

"It's very hard to tell people that she's missing."

Castle said Resendiz doesn't drive and doesn't have a vehicle. She said she is concerned and just wants her daughter to be found.

"This isn't like Angie. I just want to find her," she said.

In a post Friday on X, the NCIS said it "urges anyone with information" regarding Resendiz's whereabouts "to contact NCIS at 877-579-3648 or using the NCIS Tips app. Tips may be reported anonymously."