Missing woman fled abusive relationship, family says

Three months ago, while still recovering from an abusive relationship, Laura Marie Nimbach went missing.

No one has seen her since.

The Pinellas County woman's family and friends continue to hold out hope that she's alive, and they even have placed a Craigslist listing seeking help and information.

"The past few months have been beyond words," said Rene Benedetto, Nimbach's older sister. "I don't know if I have words for what it's been. Heartwrenching. There's a constant sense of desperation and helplessness. There's definitely days that we all feel the worst - it's never happened that it's been this long without her talking to us, ever."

Last year, Nimbach became addicted to prescription drugs and entered into an abusive relationship, Benedetto said. After the man physically attacked Nimbach in November, she took more than 250 pills in an attempt to kill herself, Benedetto said today.

Nimbach suffered kidney and heart failure. After she recovered enough to leave the hospital, she moved to Kentucky from the Tampa Bay area. She stayed there until January, when she moved back to Pinellas County to attend a court case against her.

She moved into a Clearwater shelter for abused women, Benedetto said.

The case against Nimbach was for assaulting a police officer, Benedetto said, but Nimbach thought she only would need to serve probation. Nimbach went missing before the case's resolution, Benedetto said.

Nimbach was last seen Feb. 17. She is white, 5-foot-5, weighs 105 pounds and has blond hair and brown eyes. She has a tattoo of "LN" on her left wrist and a tribal tattoo with flowers on her lower back. She has piercings on her nose and tongue and one above her upper lip.

Her family, whom she stayed in contact with from time to time, reported her missing March 31.

On Feb. 17, a deputy saw Nimbach sleeping behind a building in the 4800 block of 49th Street, according to the sheriff's office. The deputy gave her information on shelters. She told the deputy she was heading to a St. Petersburg shelter after leaving her boyfriend.

Her family says she has asthma and is addicted to oxycodone.

Family and friends posted an item on Craigslist seeking information or help passing out fliers about Nimbach.

"None of our family lives in Florida and we need help getting out fliers to local business', shelters, places where NA meetings are held, churches, grocery stores, post offices, bars, restaurants, bus stations, people who ride the buses, any where that there's a lot of eyes to see them and directly to people in the Tampa Bay area," the post states. "The more people who see her the better. If she's still alive, she's in a horrible situation."

Benedetto said her sister is smart and energetic and loves animals and the outdoors. Nimbach had attended a nursing school in Michigan and had never let go of wanting to be a nurse, Benedetto said. Nimbach also had attended a vocational school in Florida.

"She was very active and loved to be outside," Benedetto said. "She was a really hard worker, a super-focused girl."

Those who might know Nimbach's whereabouts can call deputies at (727) 582-6200 or Crime Stoppers at (800) 873-TIPS.