Overview

Last Seen: November 25, 1973, approximately 11:00 p.m.
Location: Santa Clara, California
Age: 17
Status: Missing; foul play suspected
Circumstances: Lulaida left her McDonald’s job and began driving home. She never arrived. Her abandoned vehicle was recovered in Santa Clara on December 24 with her purse, coat, work uniform, keys and other belongings inside.

Main points: There was no known reason for Lulaida to voluntarily leave her family; authorities believe she may have been taken against her will; her remains have not been recovered or identified; and the case continues to appear in current missing-person databases.

Detailed Case Breakdown

Lulaida Morales Sejalbo: The 1973 Disappearance of a Santa Clara Teen

Seventeen-year-old Lulaida Morales Sejalbo disappeared in Santa Clara, California, on November 25, 1973, after leaving her job at a McDonald’s restaurant. More than five decades later, she has never been found, and authorities continue to list her as missing while acknowledging that foul play is suspected.

Lulaida, who may also have used the first name Loyola, was born December 3, 1955, in the Philippines. She was approximately 5 feet 3 inches tall and weighed about 120 pounds, with black hair and brown eyes. Identifying features include a scar on her right foot and, according to more detailed case information, a small mole on the left side of her lower lip. Dental information is also available.

The Night Lulaida Disappeared

On Sunday, November 25, 1973, Lulaida finished work at a McDonald’s restaurant in Santa Clara at approximately 11:00 p.m. She was wearing her McDonald’s work uniform. A friend reportedly saw her begin her drive home. She never arrived and has never been heard from again.

At the time, Lulaida was a student at Wilcox High School. She had been living in the United States periodically since 1969 and was not yet fluent in English. Available accounts describe her as being on good terms with her family, with investigators finding no apparent reason for her to deliberately disappear.

Her Abandoned Car Is Found

The case took an ominous turn on December 24, 1973, almost one month after Lulaida vanished.

Her vehicle was discovered abandoned in Santa Clara. Inside were personal possessions including her purse, coat, work uniform, keys and other belongings. Despite the discovery, investigators found no evidence revealing where Lulaida had gone.

The circumstances led authorities to believe Lulaida may have been taken against her will. The California Department of Justice currently states that foul play is suspected.

No remains have been identified as Lulaida’s, and the case should therefore be described as an unsolved missing-person case with suspected foul play, rather than a confirmed homicide.

A Case That Has Remained Open for More Than 50 Years

Lulaida’s case remains publicly listed by the Santa Clara Police Department through the California Department of Justice, and the state’s current missing-person record identifies Santa Clara Police as the reporting agency. The state record carries case number 8019037.

The National Center for Missing & Exploited Children also maintains an active poster for Lulaida. Its record identifies NCMEC case number 1232639 and NCIC number M662810869 and displays an age-progressed image depicting how Lulaida might have appeared at age 59.

NamUs-related case information identifies her as MP4557.

Latest Case Information

There have been recent updates to Lulaida’s public case records, although no publicly documented breakthrough or identification has been announced.

The Charley Project reports that its Lulaida Morales Sejalbo case file was last updated May 4, 2026, when a picture was added. Its current listing classifies Lulaida as endangered missing and continues to state that authorities suspect foul play.

Even more recently, The Doe Network recorded an update to case 931DFCA on June 22, 2026. Its public update log says that Lulaida’s case information was updated but does not identify the update as a resolution, arrest, recovery or identification.

As of the latest publicly available information located for this article, Lulaida remains missing. The California Department of Justice continues to publish her case and asks anyone with information about missing persons in its database to contact the listed investigating agency or the state’s missing-person hotline.

Questions That Still Remain

The central mystery is what happened after Lulaida began driving home from work on November 25, 1973.

Her vehicle apparently remained undiscovered until December 24. The presence of her purse, keys, clothing and other belongings in the abandoned car raises the possibility that whatever happened to her occurred unexpectedly and prevented her from retrieving possessions she would normally have taken with her.

Over the decades, online researchers have discussed possible connections between Lulaida’s disappearance and other crimes or offenders in Northern California. These theories remain speculative unless confirmed by law enforcement. A Websleuths discussion of the case, for example, includes theories involving known offenders as well as recollections attributed to someone who said she had been Lulaida’s friend. None of those discussions establish the identity of a perpetrator.

The confirmed public record remains much narrower: Lulaida left work, was seen beginning her trip home, disappeared, and her abandoned vehicle was subsequently recovered containing important personal possessions. More than half a century later, authorities still suspect foul play.

Very Brief Case Summary

Last Seen: November 25, 1973, approximately 11:00 p.m.
Location: Santa Clara, California
Age: 17
Status: Missing; foul play suspected
Circumstances: Lulaida left her McDonald’s job and began driving home. She never arrived. Her abandoned vehicle was recovered in Santa Clara on December 24 with her purse, coat, work uniform, keys and other belongings inside.

Main points: There was no known reason for Lulaida to voluntarily leave her family; authorities believe she may have been taken against her will; her remains have not been recovered or identified; and the case continues to appear in current missing-person databases.