Where is Natanis Merasty? Edmonton police seek tips after Indigenous woman's disappearance
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Edmonton police issued an appeal on Friday for tips in the case of 24-year-old Natanis Merasty, who was last seen May 5 in Edmonton.
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Originally from Prince Albert, Sask., Merasty's vehicle was spotted in three different provinces before being found abandoned on James Smith Cree Nation May 15.
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'Natanis is very soft spoken, shy, loving, caring,' Marcela Merasty, aunt of Natanis Merasty, told a news conference Friday. 'We want her home. She is loved, she did not deserve this. Her family dearly misses her and wants her home.'
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'We have a lot of hope that she's still alive,' said Victor Michel, the missing person's uncle . 'Mainly, we are missing our girl. We want her home.'
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Natanis Merasty is a member of Peter Ballantyne Cree Nation in northeast Saskatchewan. She resided in Prince Albert at the time of her disappearance, and was believed to be travelling west with a group of people in her black 2007 Hyundai Tucson.
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Natanis was last seen in Edmonton on May 5. Security cameras recorded her at the Continental Inn at 166 Street and Stony Plain Road. She left the motel around 1:22 a.m. in her vehicle, and it returned at around 1:30 a.m. before leaving again at 2:37 a.m.
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She was spotted on a security camera at a 7-Eleven on 156 Street and 107 Avenue at 2:55 a.m.
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After that, only her vehicle was spotted. The Hyundai travelled through Edmonton, Sherwood Park, Buck Lake and Nordegg before being seen near Lake Louise.
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The vehicle then entered British Columbia, ferrying to Nanaimo on May 7. It was spotted again in Edmonton on May 10, then west of Lloydminster on May 12. It was finally found abandoned and repainted silver on James Smith Cree Nation in Saskatchewan on May 15.
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Merasty was reported missing to RCMP on May 9 after she dropped out of touch with her family. Edmonton city police took over the investigation on May 22. Det. Lisa Riou said her disappearance is considered suspicious.
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'We've spoken to a number of individuals, and we have a number of people of interest,' she said. However, police continue to seek tips from anyone who may have seen Natanis.
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