(01/31/06) JERSEY CITY ? Family members of a missing Jersey City teen are bracing for the worst in a case police have labeled ?suspicious.?

Eighteen-year-old Catrina Hinton was last seen January 14 leaving work at a Mandee store in Bayonne. Family members say she should have taken a bus home following her workday, but she never arrived in Jersey City. The girl?s relatives say they are growing increasingly fearful the girl will be found dead.

Police don?t believe Hinton ran away based on her attitude and employment record. They also say she never picked up her last paycheck, which is something investigators believe Hinton would have done if she was on the run. Hinton is 5 feet 2 inches tall, has a tongue piercing and wears a gold bracelet that reads ?I love you.? Anyone with information on the teen?s whereabouts is encouraged to call the Jersey City Police Department.