TORRANCE, Calif., Nov. 22 -- A car belonging to a former Los Angeles Raiders cheerleader who has been missing since last week was found Wednesday in a restaurant parking lot, and police said they believe the missing model met someone there. Police matched the license plate of Linda Sobek's 1992 Nissan 240 SX with the same type of car parked at a Denny's restaurant near the 405 Freeway in Torrance, about 5 miles from Sobek's Hermosa Beach home. An anti-theft device was on the car's steering wheel, indicating Sobek parked the car there herself, Hermosa Beach police Officer Tom Thompson said. 'It (the car's discovery) is significant because we believe Linda met someone at this location,' police Lt. Mark Wright said. The car was towed to a Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department station, where it was opened and inspected for evidence linked to the model's disappearance. Deputy Brian Jones said a preliminary investigation found 'no obvious evidence,' but added that criminalists will conduct a more thorough investigation later. Sobek, 27, and her car had been missing since last Thursday after she told her mother that she was going to a daytime modeling assignment. She failed to show up for a calendar shoot that night. Sobek's mother reported her missing Friday. Police said a man who had heard about Sobek's disappearance called them after realizing the car on the parking lot matched the model's vehicle, police Sgt. Paul Wolcott said. In a development that could yield more clues, police said several of Sobek's friends found an imitation leopard skin bag with curlers marked with the letter 'L' in a ravine Wednesday in the Angeles National Forest, which sits in the foothills of Southern California.
Searchers had found a day planner and photos belonging to Sobek in the forest the day before, and Thompson said police believe the latest items may also have belonged to Sobek. Hermosa Beach police, who have been investigating Sobek's disappearance, said Wednesday they have determined that Sobek was not seen at an undisclosed West Hollywood location listed in her day planner. Detectives have interviewed people who were at the 'public place' last Thursday at 1 p.m. -- the time noted in her day planner -- but no one there saw the missing model, Wolcott said. 'We have learned she was not seen at this location,' Wolcott said. 'The people at this location are familiar with this story.' Police have refused to disclose the name of the location, but the Daily Breeze newspaper reported it was a restaurant. Police found the day planner and some of Sobek's photos in a trash can after a county road worker reported finding photos of the model. Sobek's roommates fear she was lured by someone promising a modeling assignment, but said Wednesday they were optimistic that Sobek will be found alive. Several of Sobek's friends have offered a $20,000 reward for information leading to her whereabouts, and family friends said that reward was being increased to $100,000 or more. Friends also distributed fliers Wednesday asking the public for help in finding Sobek, who was a Raiderettes cheerleader from 1988 to 1992. Police have acknowledged there were 'similar circumstances' between Sobek's disappearance and the 1992 murder of Kimberly Pandelios, who was also a young blond model last known to be leaving for a photo shoot. Pandelios's remains were found about a year later in the Angeles National Forest about 3 miles away from where Sobek's belongings were discovered.
