Palm Springs woman missing days after boyfriend vanishes

PALM SPRINGS, Calif. (KESQ) - A woman in Palm Springs, Nadia Khaddar, has been reported missing months after she was last seen. In February, News Channel 3 shared the story of her boyfriend, Terrence Scott, who was also reported missing in early January. Now, Nadia’s family says they haven’t heard from her since a few days after Scott vanished.

"The biggest concern is not knowing if she's dead or alive. It's really unusual that she could go this long without contacting me or my dad or my mom," says Nadia's brother, Safir Khaddar.

Loved ones of the couple say both have mental illness; Khaddar has bipolar disorder, and Scott has schizophrenia. 

"It's been really hard for her to find stability because as soon as she gets some form of stability going, she'll have an episode," says Safir Khaddar.

Family members feel that because they both have mental illnesses, the police department hasn't moved with much urgency.

"I just wish that there were better protections for people with mental illness. I think the important thing to note here is that these people don't want to be homeless. They don't want to struggle for food and for water, for drinks. They don't want that for themselves in their right mind," says Johnson Scott.

Khaddar agrees, "I don't think there's enough like the family members like enough resources for family members with siblings or parents or kids with mental illness."

The last people to see the couple say it's "beyond strange" that they are both missing.

News Channel 3 asked the Palm Springs Police Department how they handle cases of missing individuals with mental illness.

"When it comes to missing individuals, you know, the state law requires that we take those without delay. One of the things when we're talking about a at risk missing missing individual or what we typically look at is if there's unusual circumstances leading to their missing status," says Captain Gustavo Araiza with Palm Springs police.

If you’ve seen Khaddar or Scott, please contact the Palm Springs Police Department at (760) 323-8116.