There is nothing quite like the bond between sisters. Mey Martin, Kaye Ford, and Chloe Saelee would know. There are four of them. The three sisters described the fourth, 39-year-old Nikki Cheng Saelee-McCain, to Dateline.
“She’s goofy, she’s silly. Like she’s very outgoing,” Mey said. “She has a very big heart. And she finds everything funny,” Kaye added. “She has like the most personality out of all of us. She’s the more feisty, but she’s also the more funny. She’s very brave. She’s very daring,” Chloe said. “If you need someone to go do something for you, she’s the person.”
Now, however, it’s Nikki who’s in need. She was reported missing on May 21, 2024 in Redding, California, and she needs to be found.
According to Kaye, Nikki was visiting one of her husband’s family members in the hospital on May 17 and told her various people were shuffling cars around, driving people back and forth from the hospital, and dropping off cars. Exactly where Nikki was, who she was with, and what vehicle she was in, is unclear to Nikki’s family.
The sisters last communicated with Nikki late in the evening on May 17. “She had texted Chloe that she was at the hospital,” Kaye said. “Later that night she texted Chloe and let her know that she was on her way to drop her mother-in-law’s vehicle off back at her house and that one of [her husband’s friends] would be following her to then bring her back home.”
According to Kaye, Chloe texted Nikki again later that night and into the early morning hours of May 18, but did not get a reply.
Nikki’s sisters explained that the four of them have a group text, but it’s not unusual for them to not hear from each other for a couple of days. “Sometimes we don’t hear from her, but that’s the same for me. Like, I get busy and I don’t text, so it’s not like that out of the ordinary,” Kaye told Dateline. After a couple of days, they noticed Nikki had not been in contact with any of them. “We realized we hadn’t really heard from her.”
Kaye told Dateline she began to worry when Nikki’s husband told her sisters he hadn’t heard from Nikki in a few days, either.
Chloe says she filed a missing persons report with the Redding Police Department on May 21. The Shasta County Sheriff’s Office is currently handling Nikki’s case. Public Information Officer Timothy Mapes provided their initial media release on Nikki’s case to Dateline. “The Shasta County Sheriff’s Office is seeking the public’s assistance in locating a missing adult. 39-year-old Nikki Cheng McCain was last in contact with family members on May 17th, 2024,” it reads in part. “Initially, this case was being investigated by the Redding Police Department; however, due to information suggesting Nikki was last seen in the Sheriff’s Office jurisdiction, the investigation has been taken over by the Sheriff’s Office Major Crimes Unit.”
Redding Rancheria — a Native American reservation in Shasta County — is where Nikki’s mother-in-law lives, and where Nikki texted Chloe she was headed in their last exchange.
Redding Rancheria put out a press release about Nikki’s case earlier this month saying it was “supporting all efforts to find Nikki Cheng Saelee McCain. We are deeply saddened that she has been missing for so long. She is close and dear to many in our Tribal community and we wish for her safe return home.” They also said they were “cooperating with local law enforcement to provide information and video footage requested by law enforcement.”
In a follow up email to Dateline, Redding Rancheria said both “local and warranted searches” were conducted on the property, but they are “unsure where exactly [Nikki] was last seen” and are “unaware of any evidence” that would indicate Nikki disappeared on the reservation.
The Shasta County Sheriff’s office said that on May 25, “Nikki’s 2002 pewter colored Chevy Avalanche, with California plate DP154UT, was located in western Tehama County.” There was no sign of Nikki. Tehama County is about an hour’s drive from Redding Rancheria.
Redding Rancheria put out a press release on July 19 stating have put up a large billboard along I-5 to help spread awareness about Nikki’s case. They are offering a $10,000 reward for information leading to Nikki’s location. They noted that Shasta County Secret Witness is offering up to a $10,000 reward and Kingsman Philanthropic Corp is offering a $10,000 reward, bringing the combined total reward to up to $30,000.
PIO Mapes told Dateline in an email that “detectives with the Shasta County Sheriff’s Office Major Crimes Unit continue to work diligently on the investigation,” but he was unable to share further details to “protect the integrity of the investigation.”
The Facebook page “Help Find Nikki Cheng-Saelee McCain” was set up by the Nor-Cal Alliance for the Missing and has more than 3,000 followers. “They’ve been really good about getting information out,” Kaye said. “They push a lot of information. They’ve been a good resource.” There have also been several justice rallies in the community, and more than 100 family members, friends, and locals submitted the case to Dateline.
Members of the community also set up searches for Nikki. “One was done by a family friend — the very first one. And then the second one was by just somebody in the community who just really wants to help,” Chloe told Dateline.
According to Kaye, as well as court documents, Nikki had been scheduled to appear in court for a settlement conference on June 3, shortly after she disappeared. Her husband, Tyler McCain, was facing four felony charges stemming from an alleged domestic violence incident against Nikki in December 2023. He pleaded not guilty to the charges.
On July 5, the charges against Tyler McCain were dismissed, prompting community outrage. Shasta County District Attorney Stephanie Bridgett addressed those concerns in an interview posted on Facebook. “I hear the community’s pleas for answers and justice for Nikki Cheng McCain,” she said. “I share in those sentiments and frustrations.” Bridgett described the decision to drop the charges as difficult, however. “In the United States, everyone has a constitutional right to confront the witnesses against them,” she said. “That means the accuser — the victim — must be present in trial to testify against them. And we haven’t been able to locate her.” The dismissal, she said, “preserves our ability to re-file the case once Nikki is located or sufficient evidence is obtained to utilize her statements in her absence.”
The D.A. stated that both the domestic violence case and the missing persons case are being actively worked by their office and the Shasta County Sheriff’s Office, with significant resources being dedicated to each. “The District Attorney’s Bureau of Investigation has been involved in multiple operations to locate Nikki and we are working closely with the Shasta County Sheriff’s Office,” Bridgett said. “We also have an advocate who has been assigned to the domestic violence case and was working with Nikki up until her disappearance and continues to work with Nikki’s immediate family on both the domestic violence case and the missing person investigation.”
Dateline reached out to both Tyler McCain and his attorney, but has not yet heard back.
Nikki’s sisters believe there are people who can help locate her. “I know that there’s people out there that know something. I just want them to be brave and to please come forward so we can find where Nikki went,” Chloe said. “Because I know she wouldn’t just walk off. She wouldn’t just leave.”
Nikki is 4’11” and 110 pounds. She has brown hair and brown eyes. Her 2002 pewter Chevy Avalanche had the California license plate DP154UT and was located in western Tehama County.
The Shasta County Sheriff’s Office told Dateline that “if anyone has any information about Nikki’s whereabouts or has any information about seeing the vehicle, or its occupants after May 17th, they are asked to contact the Shasta County Major Crimes Unit at 530-245-6135 or by email at MCU@shastacounty.gov.”
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