Missing 22-year-old Woman's Case Treated As Criminal Investigation 3 Weeks After Disappearance

The search for the missing California woman, Jolissa Fuentes, who was last seen in a video at a convenience store in Fresno County at the beginning of August, will be treated as a criminal investigation, police said.

The 22-year-old woman from Selma was reported missing by her family on Aug. 7. Fuentes was last seen at a local convenience store in the early hours of the day as she was returning home from a family gathering.

The footage from the store shows her making a purchase and leaving in her 2011 silver Hyundai sedan with license plate 8MPU766.

Three weeks after Fuentes went missing, police were still not able to locate her or find the vehicle she was seen driving.

"To this point, there is nothing overtly that leads us to believe that a criminal act has occurred; however, Miss Fuentes has been gone a long time, and this is not normal behavior for Miss Fuentes so we are treating this as a criminal matter," Police Chief Rudy Alcaraz said, NBC News reported.

The police said the search into the details of Fuentes' cellphone, her social media activity, and her bank records have left no forensic trail. "It's very rare that a 22-year-old girl has no digital footprint," Alcaraz said, adding that it has raised suspicion that her missing could be part of a crime.

The police could, however, initially trace Fuentes's cellphone data to the nearby city of Sanger, up to the Avocado Lake and Pine Flat area. Investigators are intensifying the search in the area as Fuentes' family said she has visited the location before, CNN reported.

Meanwhile, the FBI has joined the Fresno County Sheriff's Office and the Fresno PD in the search. Adventures with Purpose (AWP), the independent search and rescue group that helped officials discover the body of missing teen Kiely Rodni earlier this month, has also joined the search efforts.

After a thorough search at Avocado Lake last week, AWP has ruled out the location. However, the team plans to continue search operations at Pine Flat Lake and other areas, Doug Bishop, a member of AWP said.

Meanwhile, Fuentes' mother, Norma Nunez, said she still believes that they are going to find her daughter alive. "We are still going out there and searching. We are looking into hiring a private investigator. We are not going to stop until she is home with us," Nunez said.