‘Missing’ woman was hiding in her house

HESPERIA — A 43-year-old woman who authorities were searching for since Sunday night after leaving a suicide note, claims she was hiding in her house the whole time, police said.

The woman emerged from a crawl space under her home Monday around midnight, said Undersheriff Tim Priese of the Oceana County Sheriff’s Office.

A male resident was home at the time the woman emerged from her hiding place.

The home had been searched many times by several people during the woman’s “disappearance,” Priese said. He said law enforcement authorities believe the woman may have slipped back in the house when authorities weren’t there.

The woman, who cannot be identified due to the suicidal nature of the case, is receiving medical treatment.

Searchers from the Oceana County Sheriff’s Department, Hesperia Fire Department, Ferry Fire Department and Blue Lake Township Search and Rescue, three Michigan State Police canine units,  and a team from the Michigan Department of Corrections were involved in the search.

It’s possible the woman could face criminal charges.