True Crime with Kendall Rae
Mom of 4 Vanishes Before Abusive Husband’s Trial: Where Is Nikki Cheng Saelee McCain?
Thu, 06 Feb 2025
To: [email protected] Subject line: Re: Nikki Saelee McCain- Request for Collaboration and Support To whom it may concern, I hope this message finds you well. I’m reaching out to kindly request that you investigate the unsolved disappearance of Nikki Saelee McCain, and increase your collaborative efforts with her family in an effort to achieve justice. While the billboard and reward for information have been deeply appreciated, fostering a relationship with Nikki’s loved ones will drive confidence that everything is being done to solve this case. I am asking that you please move forward with Nikki and her family in mind, as the quickest way to achieve justice will be with your help. Thank you. -- One Safe Place: https://onesafeplacenorth.org/ Facebook Group: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?... Link Tree: https://linktr.ee/findnikki GoFundMe: https://www.gofundme.com/f/support-ni... If you have any information regarding the disappearance of Nikki ‘Cheng’ Saelee-McCain, please call the Shasta County Secret Witness at 530-245-6135 or the Kingsman Philanthropic Corporation at 786-509-7135. -- This episode is sponsored by: Factor - promo code: tckr50off Check out my foundation: Higher Hope Foundation: https://www.higherhope.org/ Watch my documentaries: 530 Days: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CjUWkmOjNLk Apartment 801: https://bit.ly/2RJ9XXr True Crime with Kendall Rae podcast: Apple Podcasts: https://apple.co/3rks84o Spotify: https://spoti.fi/3jC66pr Shop my Merch! https://kendallrae.shop Check out my other podcasts: Mile Higher (True Crime) @milehigherpod YouTube: https://bit.ly/2ROzJcw Instagram: http://instagram.com/milehigherpod The Sesh (Current events, a little true crime, pop culture, and commentary) https://bit.ly/3Mtoz4X @the_seshpodcast Instagram: https://bit.ly/3a9t6Xr *Follow My Social!* @KendallRaeOnyt Instagram: http://instagram.com/kendallraeonyt Facebook: https://bit.ly/3kar4NK True Crime TikTok: https://bit.ly/3VDbc77 Personal TikTok: https://bit.ly/41hmRKg REQUESTS: General case suggestion form: https://zfrmz.com/yg9cuiWjUe2QY3hSC2V0 Form for people directly related/ close to the victim: https://zfrmz.com/HGu2hZso42aHxARt1i67 Join my discord to chat with other viewers about this video, it’s free! https://discord.com/invite/an4stY9BCN C O N T A C T: For Business Inquiries - [email protected] Send me mail: Kendall Rae 8547 E Arapahoe Rd Ste J #233 Greenwood Village, CO 80112
Chapter 1: Who is Nikki Saelee McCain and what happened to her?
Today I'm going to be telling you about the unsolved disappearance of 39-year-old mother Nikki Chang Saley McCain. And I was very fortunate to connect with two of her sisters who have agreed to come on the show today and tell the story a bit from their own words, which is always super valuable. And God, I was on the phone with them for about two hours the other day and I am just blown away by
by everything that they have been through everything that nikki had gone through and i mean the way that they have just stepped up to support her sister and her children as well is is so commendable they have been so so strong and i'm just very grateful that they agreed to take time to come on the show and tell you about nikki story themselves because i know they are
quite quite busy these days but it is always just so valuable to hear directly from family members throughout this episode you're going to be hearing from chloe and k and i just can't thank them enough for trusting me with their sister's story and if you are familiar with nikki's case at all or have watched any other coverage you likely have heard from them before they have been very active in the case they have dedicated a ton of time to
fighting for answers and justice for Nikki and doing their best to spread the word about her case. My audience is incredible. You guys always really come out and huge support, especially when we have family members actually coming on the show. I want to see... Awesome support for them in the comments and I hope you guys will also go the extra mile.
We have some steps that you can take to help them even further that we will get into in a little bit. But yes, they're just such awesome people. I really look up to them and everything they have done is... Just so commendable. I mean, after everything they have been through, all of the trauma that they have experienced, they have remained so strong, so focused on the end goal here.
And I don't know, it's just beyond words impressive. Really, their whole family has just spent years supporting Nikki, even before she went missing. And I know that they're going to continue to do so until they get justice. And as always, this is an ongoing investigation and everyone that I speak about in this case is innocent until proven guilty in a court of law.
So with all that being said, let's go ahead and jump into the case. I did find out after recording last week that I actually had bronchitis, so I'm I think pretty much at the tail end of that. But I don't know, I may sound a little nasally and coffee and whatever, just sick today. So just bear with me. But let's get into this.
I am eager to tell you more about Nikki and the awesome person that she was. Und das beginnt mit dem Erlernen der Geschichte hinter ihrem Namen. Nikki Chang Saley wurde am 9. November 1984 in Thailand geboren, wo ihre Eltern in einem Flüchtlingscamp nach dem Vietnamkrieg lebten.
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Chapter 2: What is the significance of Nikki's family background?
Ihre Angehörigen waren ursprünglich Landwirte aus China und über die Zeit migrierten sie zu Plätzen wie Laos, Vietnam und Thailand. und Nicky's family line was among those who ended up in Thailand to escape the war.
And I bring this up because Chang is Nicky's Mian name, and that's what her family called her when they were together, but others started calling her Nicky when they immigrated to the United States. Nicky He was the second of four siblings born in Thailand, including her older sister May and her younger sister Kay. And eventually her parents left Thailand and found their way to Seattle.
However, they ended up moving again, and this time they moved to Northern California in Reading, where they had three more kids, including her other younger sister Chloe. And I've got to say, I just loved learning about Nikki. She seemed like such an awesome person to be around. She was fun, she was free-spirited and very funny.
And of course, I never got the pleasure of meeting her myself, but just by talking to Chloe and Kay, they really did such a great job of... Ja, genau. You know, she always wanted to do the fun things for her kids. Like she got into holidays big time, you know, even things like Valentine's Day.
She would just go all out with the colors or any type of, you know, school event or, you know, how they'll have like themed days at school. She would just go all out for that and always was looking for ways to make other people around her and her children have a good time. And I think that's such an amazing quality in a human.
Now, growing up, Nikki and her siblings had the fortune of living close to a bunch of their other relatives, which meant tons of time with their cousins and building a really strong sense of family. And there were actually quite a bit of boy cousins, so the girls kind of stuck together and formed their own little girls group in a way. And that only made them that much closer.
And having that experience from such a young age and having such a big, close-knit family is... was sie so zu ihrer Familie verliebt hat und sie dazu geführt hat, eine große, nahe Familie ihrer eigenen zu haben. Und eines meiner persönlichen Lieblingsmöglichkeiten, die ich über Nicki lernte, ist, dass sie jemand war, der immer darauf wollte, dass jeder inklusive war.
Sie wollte nie jemanden, der sie um sie herum hatte, zu fühlen, als wären sie draußen. Sie war die Art von Person, die aus ihrem Weg gehen würde, in jeder Situation, um die Leute zu fühlen, als ob sie Teil des Gruppes wären. Und es machte keinen Sinn, ob das jemand war, den sie kannte oder ein kompletter Auferstandener.
Und ich denke, sie hat viel davon durch Humor gemacht, auch wenn es sich um ihre eigenen Zweifel handelte. Und einige der Geschichten, die ihre Schwestern mir am letzten Tag erzählt haben, haben mich laut gelacht. Und ich hatte Bronchitis, also war ich fast schockiert. Aber sie klingt einfach absolut furchtbar. Sie hatte das Gefühl von Humor, dass sie so, so furchtbar war.
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Chapter 3: How did Nikki's relationship with Tyler McCain evolve?
Her sister said that she would look at the killer in these cases and say that she could see sadness in their eyes. She always found a way to forgive people and had this positivity about her that was incredibly endearing. And unfortunately, at times, this could be to a fault. Und Sie werden das mehr verstehen, als ich heute's Case erkläre.
Und das being said, Nicky's big heart and her kindness is just what made her who she was. And to tell you more about that, here are her sisters.
Hi, I am Nikki's sister Kay. Something about Nikki that sometimes people don't always notice is that she is kind of like, she reminds me of a little chihuahua sometimes. She's super fun and bubbly and always wanting to enjoy every piece of life. But sometimes she doesn't realize she's just, she's such a, you know, physically, she was a small little petite person.
But she had a heart and a personality that was just so much bigger than what her body could even encompass. And, you know, she was super scrappy. Not what you would expect from someone like her. But she is, I guess, like a little Chihuahua would go up to like a big dog. And still, you know, she'll still, she thinks she can take it on. So I think that's very important. Very much Nikki.
She was very confident, sure of herself in that way. And she was just such a free spirit.
My name is Chloe and I'm one of Nikki's younger sisters. I think the best way to describe Nikki is that she is such a silly and goofy person. She is always giggly. She's also very gentle and kind. And she's also such a caregiver. She loves everyone. Being able to take care of someone and she loves nurturing someone.
So as you can see, after hearing the way that they describe her, Nikki was just an incredibly loved person. And I hate that we even have to be here talking about her story today. And as we get into the case here, you're going to realize what a strong person she was as well. I mean, she went through the worst of the worst before she went missing.
And despite all of that, she had really turned the corner. was ready to get her life back on track. But before she was ever able to do that, she vanished. And many believe it's because of her husband, Tyler McCain. So who is Tyler? What's his story? And what's their story? Well, in the late 2000s, Nikki was living in Reading and she worked at the Wind River Casino as a cocktail waitress.
Her sister Kay actually worked there too, which was super fun for the two of them. And that's where she met Tyler, who worked there in the slots department. Now, Tyler definitely had the reputation of being sort of a...
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Chapter 4: What led to Nikki's disappearance?
Tyler, on the other hand, he wasn't done with her. And at one point, he convinced Nikki to drive him to a court hearing because he had a suspended license and she agreed. But as they start driving, he directed her to his lawyer's office instead. And when they got there, he and his lawyer tried to convince her to drop the charges.
And when she said no, he drove off in her car, just abandoning her at his lawyer's office, even though he had a suspended license. And this wasn't the last time that he would try to pressure her to drop the charges. And it was the same old, same old as all of the times before he kept telling her he would change and that they could possibly get their kids back if she moved back home.
And as hard as it is to say this, it worked. And in March, April-ish of 2023, Nikki moved back in with him. Und natürlich war das einfach schmerzhaft für ihre Familie, aber sie konnten sie letztendlich nicht stoppen. Sie versuchte, ihnen zu versichern, dass Tyler sie nicht mehr schmerzen würde, aber, naja, sie ist verpasst.
Ich meine, das ist der Grund, warum wir hier über ihre Geschichte sprechen. Und sie war verpasst, direkt vor seinem Trial für die Domestikwahl, was mich zu ihrer Verlustbringung bringt. After Nikki moved back in with Tyler, she still held her ground when it came to the charges. She refused to drop them.
So on May 7th, 2024, he had to appear in court for a preliminary hearing where he pleaded, of course, not guilty. And it was actually on this day that Nikki ended up texting her sister Chloe and told her that she was officially done, that she was tired of his bullshit and she wanted a divorce.
In fact, she was already looking for furniture for a new apartment and she said that she was determined to get custody of her kids back. And at this time, it really felt like a turning point for her and everyone was so eager about it. But just 10 days later, on May 17th, Nikki vanished. Und so werde ich mein Bestes tun, um die Zeitung der Events zu erklären.
Aber ich wollte das mit dem Hinweis machen, dass das von Chloe und Kay zusammengefasst wurde, basierend auf den Geschichten, die sie gehört haben und Textmessagen. Also behält das in Ordnung. Es gibt hier viele grüne Bereiche und Dinge, die wir nur für bestimmte nicht wissen. Besonders an diesem Punkt in dem Fall, weil das ziemlich neulich passiert ist.
Und es gibt viele Informationen, die nicht von der Behörde veröffentlicht worden sind. Und so, hier ist, was sie gesammelt haben und was sie glauben, wahrscheinlich passiert ist. Am Abend des 17. Mai, war Nikki auf Telefon mit Chloe und sie hat ihr gesagt, dass sie am Mercy Hospital war, weil Brian, der Tyler's Bruder ist, tatsächlich da war, in einer ziemlich kritischen Situation.
Von dem, was ich verstehe, hatte er eine Blutverschmutzung in seinen Lungen und es war ziemlich schwer, also war er in der ICU. Und Nikki, Tyler und Jeanette, Jeanette ist Tylers Mutter als Erinnerung, fuhren alle zum Krankenhaus zusammen in einem sehr chaotischen Rutsch und sie fuhren alle zusammen in Jeanettes Auto.
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Chapter 5: How did Nikki's family react to the abuse she endured?
Sie sind nach Hause gegangen, um einige von Nickies traditionellem Meal und Kleidung zu bekommen, und sie endeten, sich herumzuspucken. Tyler hatte dieses Gebiet, wo er Junkfahrzeuge verpackt hat, und das ist das Gebiet, in dem sie unterwegs waren. Er war ein Mechaniker, also arbeitete er oft mit Fahrzeugen auf dem Gebiet. Und so haben sie in diesem Gebiet geschaut.
Während dieser speziellen Stelle war, wo die Feuerzeuge initial gespürt wurden, was sie sagen, ist ein Stück Informationen, das sie nicht verloren haben. In Wahrheit, und das ist ein großer Teil, ich meine, ich stimme sicherlich mit ihnen auf diese Seite, dass das... Very, very weird.
But Kay and Chloe believe that Tyler would have had the knowledge as a mechanic to be able to set a fire like that and make it look like an accident. Not to mention the area where he parked his car is not where he'd normally park a car that he was actively working on. He would normally pull it near the garage, not off to the side with the cars that were junked.
And that was not the only strange thing they learned that day, because I guess while they were there, Chloe's fiancé ended up speaking to Tyler, and he told him that he planned to pay Nikki off to drop the charges. According to her fiancé, he said he didn't know why people thought he killed her because he was going to pay her off.
Which is a really bizarre thing to just admit, if you ask me, especially to the victim's family. But again, going back to the fire and the idea that it was purposely set. Ich habe nichts, niemand hat any proof that he did this. There is literally nothing. I think we can all agree it's pretty strange, pretty crazy timing.
But in the end he was only given a citation for the fire because they couldn't prove that he said it on purpose. Oh, and get this, there was another fire on July 9th at Hooker Creek. Now, this was a lot smaller, but it was an area they talked about wanting to search in the Facebook group.
And I get that fires happen, and this is summer in California, but I do think it's pretty wild to have these three fires. Aber going back to the charges that Tyler was facing, I mentioned that the judge said that they were going to be dropped.
So on July 5th, the DA's office ultimately announced that they were dismissing the domestic violence charges against Tyler because they were unable to produce additional evidence. That being said, with this decision, they do reserve the right to refile these charges within a certain amount of time.
When all of this happened, they had about two and a half years left on the statute of limitations, so now they're looking at about two. Now at the courthouse, some 200 people showed up in another massive rally, and despite the heaviness of it all, there were moments of empowerment.
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Chapter 6: What events transpired on the night Nikki vanished?
Charges were filed in May of 2023, but in March of 2024, the charges were dismissed because, get this, there wasn't a judge or a courtroom available to hear his case. And the DA's office also had the right to refile the charges, which they did, but then it happened again. No judge or courtroom was available. And now I guess they're just shit out of luck.
They can't file them again and now this maniac just gets to walk free. And this is just another example of how truly fucked up our justice system is in so many ways. Like... I'm sure there are some of you out there who didn't even know something like that could happen.
So, of course, when this community heard that Tyler's charges were also being dismissed, understandably, there was a ton of outrage. People started calling for District Attorney Stephanie Bridget to basically be removed because they don't think that she has the interest of victims in mind. Yet she seems to pride herself on being victim-focused. But neither of these victims have justice.
And God, this next detail pissed me off when I first heard this. But Tyler literally flipped Nikki's sisters off as he left the courtroom. And if that doesn't tell you how he feels about all of this, I don't know what does.
And again, this is just another example of why I said at the beginning of this episode that I'm just so impressed with how Chloe and Kay have been able to stay so... I don't know what the words are. Calm and focused. Not get distracted by any of Tyler's bullshit. They are focused on the goal, which is getting justice for their sister, getting those answers. And...
I just, oh, I would lose it if I were in their position. But on another note, a better note, at the end of July, Tyler did end up getting arrested during a traffic stop. He had been driving on a suspended license in a vehicle without a license plate. And when they searched his car, they found ammunition, which violated a protective order.
But obviously these charges are nothing compared to what many believe, including myself, that he should be charged with. And he bailed out the following day and on October 7th he was present for a hearing related to that arrest. And about two dozen people gathered outside the courtroom, once again holding their Justice for Nikki posters. But besides this, you guys, things have really slowed down.
The spokesman for the sheriff's office has continued to say that the investigation into Nikki's disappearance is active, but at the same time, They are unable to share any details regarding their case to protect the integrity of the investigation.
Which is frustrating because it feels like the case of Sherry Papini had the immediate attention and outward facing focus of investigators and this case is just not being handled the same. And obviously we'd like to hope that it's for the best and that there's good reason for all of this, but it's just undeniably frustrating.
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