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New Information Emerges in Missing Nikki Saelee-McCain Case as Law Enforcement Reveals Few Details
On May 18, Saelee-McCain texted her sister Chloe Saelee at about 12:35 a.m. Saelee-McCain’s brief text said she was driving a truck that belonged to her mother-in-law Jeanette Hayward.
As
previously reported by A News Café, Hayward lives on the Redding Rancheria near the Win-River Casino, and is a Redding Rancheria tribal member.
Saelee-McCain had accompanied her mother-in-law to the hospital to visit Hayward’s son – Saelee-McCain’s brother-in-law – Brian McCain, who was hospitalized because of an emergency.
The text message Saelee-McCain sent to her sister was the last known communication she had with anyone.
According to some Saelee family members, they are in communication a minimum of once a week with an SCSO investigator who’s been assigned to the case.
However, Saelee family members also say they’ve repeatedly been told by law enforcement officials that because Saelee-McCain’s disappearance is part of an ongoing investigation, law enforcement officials have few details to disclose to the family regarding what the SCSO is doing to find Saelee-McCain, or any leads that the SCSO may be investigating regarding Saelee-McCain’s disappearance.
Felony domestic violence charges
Saelee-McCain went missing while she was involved in an allegedly abusive relationship with her husband, 39-year-old Tyler McCain.
Saelee-McCain and McCain have been married for 16 years. They have four children.
Saelee-McCain was hospitalized in December of 2023 after allegedly being assaulted by McCain in their Happy Valley home. SCSO Deputy Gerry Maul arrested McCain after meeting with Saelee-McCain at the hospital.
As previously reported by A News Café, Deputy Maul’s incident report noted that Saelee-McCain had been violently assaulted by McCain, who, according to Saelee-McCain, physically attacked her over the course of several hours in their home before she escaped.
McCain was arrested by the SCSO and charged with four felonies, which included a felony domestic violence charge, along with a false imprisonment charge, and a terroristic threats charge.
As previously reported by A News Café, some neighbors witnessed Saelee-McCain and McCain fighting at their home on several occasions over the last few years.
A source who wishes to remain anonymous to avoid possible retaliation reportedly witnessed the couple fighting not long before Saelee-McCain disappeared. The source claimed hearing McCain once yell at Saelee-McCain that he was going to kill her.
While still hospitalized, Saelee-McCain also reported to Deputy Maul that she thought her husband was going to kill her during the attack.
Two fires under investigation
As previously reported, on July 3 a fire ripped through a portion of McCain and Saelee-McCain’s 3.5-acre Happy Valley property. The Olinda Fire — as it came to be called by Cal Fire — burned 98 acres. Although the Olinda Fire did not damage or destroy any homes, it did lead to some nearby evacuations.
The fire also destroyed several vehicles allegedly belonging to McCain, who claimed the fire was sparked by a hot catalytic converter that came into contact with dry grass. McCain was cited for starting the fire, but was not arrested.
According to Cal Fire, the cause of the Olinda Fire is still under investigation.
The Yolla Fire
On July 2, the day before McCain caused the Olinda Fire, the Yolla Fire burned 19 acres next to a remote residential property in western Shasta County.
According to Cal Fire, the Yolla Fire took place near the intersection of Yolla Bolly and Wintun Road – two dirt roads off of Platina Road roughly 16 miles from where Saelee-McCain’s truck was found off Highway 36.
Platina Road connects to Highway 36 near where Nikki’s truck was found in Tehama County.
Exclusive information regarding another fire on McCain family property
A News Café has confirmed that the 40-acre property — the only land between Wintun Road where the Yolla Fire took place and Yolla Bolly Road — is owned by Tyler McCain’s cousin, Tara Webb, and her husband Joshua Webb. The Webbs reside in a home located on that parcel of land.
Tara Webb’s mother, Michelle Hayward, is Tyler McCain’s aunt. As recently as 2022 Hayward served as the Vice Chair of the Redding Rancheria’s Tribal Council.
Hayward is now a 2nd Alternate to the Tribal Council. Her LinkedIn profile says she works as the Self Governance Coordinator at the Redding Rancheria Indian Health Clinic.
A News Café is the first media organization to break the news that the Yolla Fire took place next to property owned by members of Tyler McCain’s family.
It is feasible that the Yolla Fire burned a rear portion of the Webbs’ property where it borders Wintun Road.
Similar to the Olinda Fire, Cal Fire describes on its webpage the cause of the Yolla Fire as “under investigation.”
One of the sources who’d participated in the Saelee-McCain search parties said Yolla Bolly Road had been among the areas searched.
The same source reported that the Yolla Fire occurred around the same time the search party had planned to search the area around where Yolla Bolly Road and Wintun Road intersect, but that the fire prevented them from conducting that search.
Back story regarding domestic violence pleas, court cases
On May 7, McCain pleaded not guilty to the four felony domestic violence charges leveled against him for reportedly assaulting Nikki.
Saelee-McCain went missing 11 days after the May 7 court hearing regarding the domestic violence charges against Tyler. She reportedly told one of her sisters around the time of the May 7 court date that she planned to divorce McCain.
On June 28, more than one month after Saelee-McCain went missing, Shasta County Superior Court Judge Daniel Flynn continued the domestic violence hearing until July 5 to give the prosecution more time to find Saelee-McCain, or secure additional evidence to support the felony charges against McCain.
District Attorney dismisses case
On July 5, 2024, two days after the Olinda Fire — the blaze started by Tyler McCain at his and Saelee-McCain’s Happy Valley home — Shasta County District Attorney Stephanie Bridgett announced through a press release that her office had decided to dismiss without prejudice – meaning charges can be refiled at a later date – all four of the felony domestic violence charges against McCain stemming from his Dec. 2023 arrest.
Bridgett said the DA’s office dismissed the case because Nikki had not been located, and her presence was necessary to move forward with the case.
McCain’s most recent arrest
As previously reported, McCain has a history of brushes with the law. In the most recent development, McCain was arrested on the evening of July 31 after he was pulled over in front of the Westwood Village Rite Aid in Redding. McCain was accompanied by a woman who looked like his mother, Jeanette Hayward.
McCain was arrested and charged with a misdemeanor for driving with a suspended license and a misdemeanor for violating a court order. He was also charged with an infraction for not being able to provide officers with valid proof of registration for the vehicle he was driving.
McCain’s previous legal restrictions related to domestic violence charges banned him from possessing firearms or ammunition. When officers searched his vehicle on July 31, they found ammunition.
McCain’s suspended license stems from a 2020 DUI. He was also arrested for driving with a suspended license in May of 2023. A News Café previously reported that McCain had been frequently spotted driving in the greater Redding area.
McCain was booked into the Shasta County Jail and was bailed out during the early morning hours of August 1.
McCain’s most recent court hearing pertaining to his arrest for driving with a suspended license was scheduled for August 2. However, the hearing never happened, because it was dropped from the calendar. Tyler’s settlement hearing for his driving violations is scheduled for August 19.
A News Café spoke with a local attorney who said it is rare for a car to be impounded by law enforcement officers, even if someone if caught driving with a suspended license on multiple occasions. The attorney told A News Café that driving with suspended license is typically a cite-and-release offense.
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