Arizona increased the reward for information leading to an arrest in the death of San Carlos Apache teen Emily Pike.
According to ABC 13, Governor Katie Hobbs announced an additional $25,000 Wednesday during a ceremonial bill signing for Emily’s Law, which will create a “turquoise alert” system for missing Indigenous people.
“She was our daughter, our niece, our granddaughter, our cousin, our friend, and we’re here to tell you that she mattered. Her life mattered,” her mother said.
Lawmakers named the legislation for 14-year-old Emily, who was found dead and dismembered on February 14, weeks after she fled from a group home in Mesa. Her death renewed national attention on the crisis of missing and murdered Indigenous people.
Emily’s Law launches a rapid-response alert system for missing members of federally recognized tribes, and is modeled after AMBER Alerts.
Police didn’t issue an AMBER Alert when Emily disappeared in January because she had been classified as a runaway. Under Emily’s Law, officers can issue a turquoise alert if they believe the missing person faces danger.
Officials can issue turquoise alerts for anyone up to age 65, including children.
As CrimeOnline previously reported, prior to her disappearances, and before she was placed in the group home, Emily, at age 13, was sexually assaulted while living on the San Carlos Apache Reservation, according to what police told ABC 15.
For her safety, social workers removed Emily from her mother’s custody. At a group home, she reportedly attempted suicide by tying a shoelace to a doorknob and cutting her wrists.
Emily frequently ran away. In one encounter, she reached for an officer’s gun during a stop and told police she no longer wanted to live, saying, “I am going to go to hell and you guys are all going to be there.”
Court documents obtained by FOX 10 indicated that Emily ran away three times in 2023. She told police about her dissatisfaction with life at the group home and pleaded to not return.
“Everyone let that girl down,” Emily’s uncle, Allred Pike Jr., said. “The system failed her in all aspects, not one, not two, all of it. … She’s just a 14-year-old that maybe wanted to see some friends, wanted to come home.”
Meanwhile, Hobbs said the turquoise alert system will begin operating by the end of the summer.
Gila River Indian Community Governor Stephen Roe Lewis called the measure Arizona’s most significant legislation addressing the crisis of missing and murdered Indigenous people.
The $25,000 reward offered by the state is in addition to a $75,000 reward offered by the FBI and an additional $75,000 reward offered by the San Carlos Apache Tribe, for information that leads to an arrest in the case.
Police said that no one has been ruled out as a suspect in the ongoing murder investigation. The relative accused of sexual assault has not been publicly named, as the charges were dropped, but had reportedly visited Emily’s home even after the assault took place.
To assist in the investigation, the Gila County Sheriff’s Office and the San Carlos Apache Police Department have set up an online tip portal where anonymous tips can be submitted through tips411.
Information can also be reported to the Sheriff’s Office at 928-425-4449, option 1, or the San Carlos Apache Police Department at 928-475-1700.
Check back for updates.
[Feature Photo via Mesa police]
