Kaylee Weisenberg, 17, has been missing since Dec. 28.
FALLON - A mother is pleading with anyone who might have information about her missing daughter to contact authorities so the teen can come home.
Stacie Marsh has not seen Kaylee Weisenberg since her 17th birthday Dec. 12. She says her daughter rapidly changed from an honor student who was close to family into a rebellious teen who started using methamphetamine and became obsessed with a 23-year-old man.
Kaylee vanished from Bishop, Calif., Dec. 28 where she was sent to live with her father Kendall in an attempt to get her away from Daniel "Danny" Machado. The family and Inyo County authorities think the couple may have returned to Nevada, and might have been seen in the Fallon area recently.
Kaylee has been reported as a runaway, and there are several outstanding warrants in California for Machado.
Marsh said her daughter began changing in 2003 after she met Machado at a fast food restaurant in Fallon where they both worked. At the time, Kaylee was a member of the National Honor Society and interested in sports.
"I always paid attention to who they hang out with and thought I always taught my kids to be responsible," Marsh said. "We looked at Kaylee as always being the one who bypasses everyone, she had a good head on her shoulders. Boy, did it slap us in the face."
She said once Kaylee began hanging out with Machado and his crowd, she changed drastically and began sneaking out of the house and lying to her mother. Six months into the relationship, the mother said, Kaylee was a stranger.
Marsh decided sending Kaylee to Bishop to live with her father would at least put some distance between her and Machado, who lived in Fallon. When Marsh's ex-husband was away on business Dec. 28, Kaylee disappeared. Police soon called, Marsh said, to say they found Kaylee and Machado in a California motel room. He was jailed and released on bail, Marsh said.
The mother said Kaylee took $500 in cash that belonged to her father when she left. The couple also used his credit card number to post bond, Marsh claims. Kaylee's cell phone records showed 400 calls from Machado and 270 text messages in the 10 days before she disappeared.
The Vanished Children's Alliance is helping the family by putting up posters in Nevada and California with Kaylee and Machado's photos and descriptions. Anyone with information about where Kaylee might be is asked to call the Fallon Police Department at (775) 423-2111 or the Churchill County Sheriff's Office at (775) 423-3116.