False sightings, hoaxes plague search for missing Ojibwe woman in northern Wisconsin
Tribal police in northern Wisconsin have been frustrated in their efforts to find a missing Ojibwe woman, Melissa Beson.
Lac du Flambeau Ojibwe Police Chief TJ Bill said in a statement that police have been following up on numerous leads, including on the reservation and in the Wausau area, only to learn they are false sightings or hoaxes.
Beson, 37, was last seen March 17 near Indian Village Road and Chequamegon Forest Trail on the Lac du Flambeau Reservation within Vilas County.
She was wearing red sweatpants, a black sleeveless shirt and a gray sweatshirt. She is 5'7' with a medium build, brown hair, brown eyes and has numerous tattoos, including on her neck, arms and legs.
Beson was reported missing by her family members on March 23.
Bill said that police and tribal officials have searched more than 1,300 acres of forested reservation land, much of which is extremely treacherous terrain. He said the tribe's emergency management director nearly lost her life during one of the searches in a floating bog area. Bill said police have not requested untrained volunteers in the search because of the dangerous terrain.
He said Beson's family members have not given up hope that she will be found safe.
Bill said it has been suggested that Beson is 'hiding out' somewhere for some reason and is afraid to come back to Lac du Flambeau. If that's the case, he said, he has a message:
'Melissa, please know that you are not in trouble. We are not going to arrest you or take you to jail. All anyone wants is for you to come home. Your family is frantic and the entire community is worried about you. There will be relief and much happiness upon your return. We all know that it was not your intent to cause such concern and worry."
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Frank Vaisvilas is a former Report for America corps member who covers Native American issues in Wisconsin based at the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. Contact him at fvaisvilas@gannett.com or 815-260-2262. Follow him on Twitter at @vaisvilas_frank.
This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: Hoaxes plague search for missing Ojibwe woman in northern Wisconsin
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