Homicide detectives and loved ones are searching for a missing Los Angeles County woman.

Maria Benitez, 41, was reported missing on Dec. 21, according to the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department.

The woman, who is considered at-risk, was last seen on the 5500 block of Lindsey Avenue in Pico Rivera around 12:30 p.m.

Family members said Benitez suffers from medical conditions and requires medication. They haven’t heard from her since her disappearance concerned for her well-being and asking for the public’s help.

She is described as a Hispanic woman standing 5 feet tall and weighing around 100 pounds. She has brown hair, brown eyes and a scar on her right ankle. She was last seen wearing a black shirt and black pants.

Her vehicle is described as a gray 2008 Nissan Altima with California license plate 6EPB787.

Anyone who knows Benitez’s whereabouts or has information on her disappearance is urged to call the LASD’s Homicide Bureau Missing Persons unit at 323-890-5500.

Anonymous tips can be provided to L.A. Regional Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-8477 or online at lacrimestoppers.org.

LOS ANGELES (KTLA) – Some 40,000 Southern California Edison customers were without power on Christmas Eve after a transformer failed in the Downey-Norwalk area earlier in the afternoon.  

According to SCE’s outage map, the problems began around 1:30 p.m., with Kathleen Dunleavy, a spokesperson for Southern California Edison, telling KTLA that the utility company did not have a timeframe for when power would be restored.  

“Our crews are on scene working to restore power as quickly and as safely as possible. We recognize that this is a tough time to be without power, right before a holiday,” Dunleavy said. “We recognize that this is an incredibly important situation, and we want to get the power back up for our customers.”  

Metro’s C (Green) Line trains were temporarily halted between the Norwalk and Willowbrook/Rose Park stops as a result of the outage, though normal C Line train service resumed right around 5 p.m., Metro officials said in a post to X, formerly Twitter.  

Officials in the City of Downey deployed police to help manage traffic control at intersections where traffic lights were out.  

“We encourage residents to exercise caution when driving through affected areas,” officials said in a statement.  

There were also reports of last-minute Christmas shoppers perusing the darkened aisles of local retailers also affected by the outage.  

The Santa Monica Police Department is seeking help in identifying a driver that allegedly hit and killed a person on Sunday.

The fatal crash took place at about 6:40 p.m. on Sunday on the intersection of Chelsea Avenue and Wilshire Boulevard. According to authorities, the victim, who is yet to be identified publicly, was crossing Wilshire southbound when they were struck by a white Toyota Rav4 heading eastbound on Wilshire.

The Toyota’s driver then fled the scene at a high rate of speed.

The pedestrian, a Vietnam War veteran and Santa Monica resident, was pronounced dead at the scene.

On Tuesday, police released graphic video footage of the collision. In that video, the Toyota can be seen speeding off after the crash sent the elderly victim flying.

Additional photos released showed a clear image of the suspect’s Toyota and security footage of the alleged driver.

The photo showed what appeared to be a bearded man wearing glasses, a black hoodie and gray sweatpants.

No additional details were immediately made available. Anyone who may have information related to this incident is encouraged to contact Investigator Raleigh at Evan.Raleigh@santamonica.gov, Investigator Lewis at Lantz.Lewis@santamonica.gov or the Watch Commander 24 hours a day at 310-458-8427.