Zyanya Valora was a 21-year-old female from the Ojai Valley area of Ventura County, California, last reported in connection with Ojai on June 24, 2024, before her disappearance became the focus of an urgent missing-person investigation. Online reports and public missing-person materials described her as a young Hispanic/Latina woman who stood about 5 feet tall and weighed about 90 pounds, with black hair and dark eyes.
She was reported missing by family on June 25, 2024, after leaving her home in the Mira Monte area near the 11100 block of North Ventura Avenue during the early morning hours. Publicly available case information said she was believed to have walked away from home, and family-oriented search materials described her as an at-risk dependent adult diagnosed with autism. At the time she disappeared, she was reported to have been wearing a white shirt or white tank top with shorts, and some public notices stated she may have been without shoes.
The first hours after Zyanya vanished were especially concerning because the circumstances suggested she may have left on foot and without the usual protections someone might need while moving through the area at night. A website dedicated to finding her stated that a screen from her bedroom window had been removed, which raised the possibility that she left the residence that way. Public search materials also reported that her phone connected to an open Wi-Fi network in the area of Barbara Street and Oakcrest Street at about 2:42 a.m., only a short distance from her home in Mira Monte. As the search expanded, the Ventura County Sheriff’s Office remained involved, and public reports said deputies, detectives, K9 resources, family, volunteers, and community members worked to locate her. One account reported that K9s tracked her scent toward an area near the Oak View Community Center, adding another possible point of focus during the search.
Her family’s search for answers continued for more than a year. Relatives and supporters used public outreach, a dedicated website, social media pages, fundraising efforts, and reward information to keep attention on Zyanya’s case. Her parents, identified in public reporting as Damaris Dac and Gabriel Valora, sought help raising awareness and funding efforts such as billboards, while the community shared her photo and details in hopes that someone had seen her or knew where she had gone. Public reports also noted that Zyanya had wandered away once before in 2020 and had been found a few hours later at a nearby church, a detail that helped explain why her family and authorities feared she might have become disoriented or vulnerable after leaving home.
Official reports later confirmed that Zyanya was found deceased. On September 24, 2025, human skeletal remains were discovered in the Ventura Riverbed south of the Baldwin Road bridge by members of a local conservancy organization that was working in the area. Deputies from the Ojai Patrol Station, Ojai detectives, the Ventura County Sheriff’s Major Crimes Bureau, and the Ventura County Medical Examiner’s Office responded. Because of the condition of the remains, they could not be immediately identified at the scene, but on September 26, 2025, the Medical Examiner’s Office confirmed that the remains were those of Zyanya Valora. Authorities reported that there was no obvious lethal trauma, and the cause and manner of death were pending further analysis at the time of the public announcement. The case began as the disappearance of a vulnerable young woman from her Ojai-area home and ended more than 15 months later with the painful discovery of her remains in the Ventura Riverbed, leaving her family and community with confirmation of her death while still awaiting fuller answers about what happened after she walked away.Last Seen: Jun 24, 2024
