NYC grandma who went missing in Las Vegas found dead after family got mystery texts

The family said Alisa Goods, 63, was staying with a friend during her vacation. The friend is the one who called the family to say she went to CVS and never came back.

After waiting nearly two weeks, the family of a New York City woman who went missing while on vacation in Las Vegas finally has an answer as to what happened to her — but it wasn't the answer anyone was hoping for.

Alisa Goods had been missing since Aug. 8, when she told a friend she was staying with that she was going to CVS. She never came back.

On Friday, her niece Alana Calloway said in a statement on behalf of the family to NBC New York that the 63-year-old had been found dead.

"Our hearts are broken. We were notified that my aunt was found—unfortunately, not the way we wanted her to be. This is an unimaginable time," the statement from Calloway said.

Police said the body was found near Harry Reid International Airport. Security camera footage from Aug. 8 showed Goods had fallen down an embankment and collapsed and couldn’t be seen from the adjacent roadway, Wayne Newton Boulevard, according to police.

Her body was found in a drainage ditch near a parking structure Thursday after someone called to report a body near the airport, the Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department said in a statement.

Goods, a Newark native who had been living on Manhattan's Upper East Side, had been staying at the home of a friend during the trip, according to a cousin. That friend was the one who alerted the family that something was wrong, and two days after Goods disappeared, is the one who made a missing persons report in Las Vegas, the cousin said.

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Her relatives said it was unlike the active and healthy grandmother of five to disappear without checking in.

As the days passed without any sign of Goods, her family said the mystery took an alarming turn: They began receiving text messages from Goods’ phone. The family said someone appeared to be posing as Goods and demanding money and bitcoin.

When asked whether she feared her sister had been kidnapped for ransom, Goods’ younger sister, Mielle Stone, previously said, "Yes. But we don’t have any money."

Then Goods’ son received a mysterious phone call, according to the family. Her relatives said he recorded part of the conversation. The caller identified themselves as Alisa and asked if money was being sent. But the family said the voice on the phone was not hers.

The family said they turned text messages, the phone call and other info to Las Vegas police, but received no answers until learning she had been found dead. The department did not label Goods' disappearance as suspicious, instead telling NBC News earlier in the week that it was investigating it as a missing persons case.

Police believe the texts may have come from scammers using "spoofing" technology to present themselves as texting under Goods’ number. They said they didn’t believe Goods was in danger at the time.

The cause and manner of death for Goods had not yet been shared.
"This hurts so deeply. We are still trying to learn the details surrounding her death. We ask for continued prayers and privacy as we grieve," Calloway said.

NYC grandma who went missing in Las Vegas found dead after family got mystery texts

The family said Alisa Goods, 63, was staying with a friend during her vacation. The friend is the one who called the family to say she went to CVS and never came back.

After waiting nearly two weeks, the family of a New York City woman who went missing while on vacation in Las Vegas finally has an answer as to what happened to her — but it wasn't the answer anyone was hoping for.

Alisa Goods had been missing since Aug. 8, when she told a friend she was staying with that she was going to CVS. She never came back.

On Friday, her niece Alana Calloway said in a statement on behalf of the family to NBC New York that the 63-year-old had been found dead.

"Our hearts are broken. We were notified that my aunt was found—unfortunately, not the way we wanted her to be. This is an unimaginable time," the statement from Calloway said.

Police said the body was found near Harry Reid International Airport. Security camera footage from Aug. 8 showed Goods had fallen down an embankment and collapsed and couldn’t be seen from the adjacent roadway, Wayne Newton Boulevard, according to police.

Her body was found in a drainage ditch near a parking structure Thursday after someone called to report a body near the airport, the Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department said in a statement.

Goods, a Newark native who had been living on Manhattan's Upper East Side, had been staying at the home of a friend during the trip, according to a cousin. That friend was the one who alerted the family that something was wrong, and two days after Goods disappeared, is the one who made a missing persons report in Las Vegas, the cousin said.

From Manhattan to Queens to Brooklyn to Staten Island and all points between, NBC New York covers New York City news, weather, traffic and more.

Her relatives said it was unlike the active and healthy grandmother of five to disappear without checking in.

As the days passed without any sign of Goods, her family said the mystery took an alarming turn: They began receiving text messages from Goods’ phone. The family said someone appeared to be posing as Goods and demanding money and bitcoin.

When asked whether she feared her sister had been kidnapped for ransom, Goods’ younger sister, Mielle Stone, previously said, "Yes. But we don’t have any money."

Then Goods’ son received a mysterious phone call, according to the family. Her relatives said he recorded part of the conversation. The caller identified themselves as Alisa and asked if money was being sent. But the family said the voice on the phone was not hers.

The family said they turned text messages, the phone call and other info to Las Vegas police, but received no answers until learning she had been found dead. The department did not label Goods' disappearance as suspicious, instead telling NBC News earlier in the week that it was investigating it as a missing persons case.

Police believe the texts may have come from scammers using "spoofing" technology to present themselves as texting under Goods’ number. They said they didn’t believe Goods was in danger at the time.

The cause and manner of death for Goods had not yet been shared.
"This hurts so deeply. We are still trying to learn the details surrounding her death. We ask for continued prayers and privacy as we grieve," Calloway said.