Young Mother and Air Force Veteran Mysteriously Vanishes: 'She'd Never Leave Her Daughter,' Says Friend

staff@people.com (Steve Helling)
Updated
Family of Murdered Air Force Vet Forgives the Ex-Husband Who Killed Her: 'If You Allow Bitterness and Anger to Grow, It Eats You Alive'

The surveillance video is unremarkable: Tricia Williams Todd, a 30-year-old Air Force veteran, mother and nurse, purchases some groceries at a Publix in Hobe Sound, Florida. She smiles happily and chats with the clerk.

That was the evening of April 26 – the last time that Todd was seen in public.

Later that evening, Todd met her ex-husband, who was spending time with their 2-year-old daughter. According to police, Todd dropped off some medication for the toddler.

Todd didn't show up for work the next morning at the Treasure Coast Hospice, where she worked as a nurse. When she didn't pick up her daughter later that afternoon, her father called authorities.

• Want to keep up with the latest crime coverage? Click here to get breaking crime news, ongoing trial coverage and details of intriguing unsolved cases in the True Crime Newsletter.

Police soon found Todd's car, purse and keys, but no trace of the 5'4, 110-lb. redhead. Her wallet and cell phone were missing, but there has been no activity on her credit cards. Investigators searched a five-mile radius but turned up nothing. The Sheriff's Office tells PEOPLE that "no significant leads" came from the ground search.

The disappearance has baffled those close to Todd. "She would never have left her daughter on purpose," family friend Michelle Rocker tells PEOPLE. "That baby was her entire world. She'd never leave her and run off."

The family has set up a Facebook page to post and gather updates on the case. A Crowdrise fundraising page has been established to offset the expenses for the family's search.

Todd's former husband is stationed at an Air Force base in North Carolina. He has returned to the base from Florida, but remains in contact with investigators. Sheriff William D. Snyder of the Martin County Sheriff’s Office told WPBF that he has been very cooperative with investigators.

"This is still an active search," said Snyder. "We have no plans to stop searching for Tricia Todd."