Suspected Mendocino County kidnapper arrested, victim still missing

A Covelo man suspected of kidnapping his girlfriend at gunpoint Feb. 9 was tracked down by tribal police and arrested Monday, although the whereabouts of his victim remain unknown, authorities said.

Negie Fallis, 37, was arrested by Round Valley Tribal police officers around 6 p.m. after they received a tip he was at a residence in the 23000 block of Road 337D, the Mendocino County Sheriff’s Office said in a statement.

Khadijah Britton, 23, also of Covelo, hasn’t been seen since Fallis allegedly came to a home in the 23000 block of Airport Road where she was around midnight Feb. 9, the Sheriff’s Office said. At the time, witnesses reported Fallis brandished a derringer pistol followed by a physical altercation before the two left in a black Mercedes.

Sheriff’s detectives - with help of the search-and-rescue team - conducted search operations for Britton in Covelo on Tuesday, authorities said.

Fallis was being held at the Mendocino County Jail on $200,000 bail on suspicion of kidnapping, domestic violence and a felon in possession a firearm, the Sheriff’s Office said.

You can reach Staff Writer Nick Rahaim at 707-521-5203 or nick.rahaim@pressdemocrat.com. On Twitter @nrahaim.