Melissa Fu

Status:

Open

Jurisdiction:

Irvine Police Department (CA)

Missing From:

Irvine, CA

Summary:

Melissa Fu, a 12-year-old girl of Chinese descent, disappeared on November 22, 2019, from her apartment in Irvine, California, along with her mother, Amber Aiaz. Authorities believe they may have been kidnapped when two unidentified individuals of Chinese descent forced their way into the home.

Vital Statistics

Circumstances of Disappearance:

On November 22, 2019, at approximately 6:00 p.m., Melissa was at home with her stepfather, Cheng Zhang, while her mother Amber was driving back from Las Vegas with produce. Two subjects knocked on the door to their apartment. When he opened the door, he saw a male and female of Chinese descent standing at the door and he was immediately rendered unconscious by an unknown substance. When he awoke, Amber and Melissa were missing. Someone knocked on the door at 4:30 p.m., and when Zhang answered, he saw a woman and man he did not recognize. Zhang felt something wet and misty on his face, then collapsed, unconscious. When he woke up hours later, there were bloodstains of the carpet and a bloody handprint on the kitchen wall. Melissa was gone. Aiaz should have arrived home by this time, but she was gone too. Neither of them have ever been seen again.

Additional Details:

Zhang found a white lined paper with handwritten instructions from the kidnappers in Chinese. The note said Aiaz and Melissa were okay and would be home in a few days, but only if Zhang didn't contact police; if he did, the note warned, he would never see his wife and stepdaughter again. The note instructed him to clean up the apartment and act normal until they returned. He stated that during this period he would sometimes find notes slipped under his door, telling him he was doing fine, would see Aiaz and Melissa soon, and to keep behaving normally. When several days passed with no new notes, Zhang finally decided to go to the police. Amber and Melissa had now been missing for ten days. Since that release, IPD Detectives have developed reason to believe the two were possibly kidnapped. Zhang did not behave suspiciously during the time he was under surveillance, and he directed police to where they found find the physical evidence he'd tried to cover up or destroy. He had thrown out the bloodstained carpet, but forensic techs found blood on the padding underneath, blood which they believe was Aiaz's. When investigators looked into sprays that could instantly knock someone out, they found out about an anesthetic drug called Fluothane matched that description. The FBI is offering a $10,000 reward for information leading to the whereabouts of Amber and Melissa. Aiaz left her American and Chinese bank accounts untouched, both her and Melissa's passports were left behind in the apartment, and neither of them is known to have entered China since their disappearances.

Case Last Updated:

Oct 11, 2026