Passerby Finds Woman Reported to Be Missing

A 40-year-old Chatsworth woman who was reported missing by her boyfriend after the two argued in the Malibu hills was found unharmed Tuesday by a passerby after search and rescue teams began combing the area, Los Angeles County sheriff’s deputies said.

Vicki Thompson was found walking along Kanan Dume Road about 9 a.m. after Malibu Search and Rescue Team members and a helicopter began looking for her at dawn in an area near Latigo Canyon Road, Deputy Mary Landreth said.

A passerby notified the Sheriff’s Department.

The searchers feared that Thompson had fallen down a cliff because her boyfriend, whose name was not released, had reported that he last saw her walking over the crest of a hill that led to a steep drop-off, Landreth said.

Thompson had stopped her car on Kanan Dume Road about 2:40 a.m., gotten out and walked away after arguing with her boyfriend, Landreth said.

“She had apparently slipped down the hill,” Landreth said. “When her boyfriend started looking for her and calling to her, she didn’t answer because she didn’t feel like talking to him. He drove away to get the Sheriff’s Department, and she climbed up.”

Thompson apparently rested in the area until daylight and then started walking on Kanan Dume Road, Landreth said.

She was spotted about a mile from the search.

Landreth said Thompson was not injured and refused medical attention.