{"id":20330,"date":"2021-06-03T23:56:26","date_gmt":"2021-06-04T04:56:26","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/unitedresourceconnection.org\/cannon-ball-nd-58528\/remains-of-missing-girl-discovered-after-15-years\/"},"modified":"2021-06-03T23:56:27","modified_gmt":"2021-06-04T04:56:27","slug":"remains-of-missing-girl-discovered-after-15-years","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/unitedresourceconnection.org\/cannon-ball-nd-58528\/remains-of-missing-girl-discovered-after-15-years\/","title":{"rendered":"Remains of missing girl discovered after 15 years"},"content":{"rendered":"
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When the FBI completed the facial approximation of the skull of Durham\u2019s Jane Doe, the resulting image was that of a white woman with red hair. Police released the drawing to the public and received no credible leads on missing Melissa \u201cMissy\u201d Poitra.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

BELCOURT, N. D. \u2014 Relatives held a funeral for a member of the Turtle Mountain Band of Chippewa here on May 24. They conducted rites for Melissa \u201cMissy\u201d Poitra after her daughter\u2019s remains were discovered in a plastic tote container concealed in a storage unit half a continent away and more than 15 years from the date she went missing.<\/p>\n

Poitra was a Jane Doe until April 30, when police submitted Poitra\u2019s DNA for a medical examiner\u2019s match, ending relatives\u2019 five-year crusade to obtain proof of her identity. \u201cWhen I found out Durham\u2019s Jane Doe was my sister, I didn\u2019t believe it,\u201d Missy\u2019s sister Jessica Poitra told the Native Sun News Today.<\/p>\n

The relatives\u2019 campaign began when they learned that people cleaning out a storage unit in Durham County, North Carolina reported to police that they discovered bones protruding out of a plastic container. They were cleaning the storage unit because the renter had recently died, the Durham Police said.<\/p>\n

Missy\u2019s daughter Brittani Hetland retrieved the cremated remains in Raleigh, North Carolina. The police record reflects that they had been decaying for at least 10 years when found on Oct. 22, 2016. Missy\u2019s family became suspicious they were hers after reading an online article about the discovery. She\u00a0 had been living with her boyfriend in the Durham area at the time of her disappearance in 2005.<\/p>\n

The Durham Police Department hosted a news conference on May 12 in which Durham Police Sergeant Quincey Tait confirmed she \u201cwas last known to be seen in the Durham area in late 2005. Durham Police learned that Melissa Poitra had not been in contact with her family in many years after leaving North Dakota,\u201d Quincey said.<\/p>\n

Police said officials \u00a0sent the skeletal remains to the North Carolina Office of the Chief Medical Examiner (OCME) for an autopsy. The office was able to retrieve DNA and then sent it to the University of North Texas to develop a profile. The profile became part of the National DNA Index System (NDIS) and Combined DNA Index System in February 2017.<\/p>\n

In 2018, the North Carolina OCME and the Durham Police Department sent Missy\u2019s skull to the Federal Bureau of Investigation for facial reconstruction. When the FBI completed the facial approximation of Durham\u2019s Jane Doe, the resulting image was that of a white woman with red hair. Police released the drawing to the public and received no credible leads.<\/p>\n

However, sister Jessica said, \u201cThe woman had the same gap in her teeth as my sister did and we knew it was my sister, but the police wouldn\u2019t believe us.\u201d<\/p>\n

Missy\u2019s family didn\u2019t give up, though. Daughter Brittani continued to call the Durham Police Department, demanding officials conduct a DNA swab to test for a possible match to Durham\u2019s Jane Doe. Eventually, the Durham Police Department contracted with Othram Inc. out of The Woodlands, Texas to carry out further genetic tests. According to Othram\u2019s website, the organization is the first and only forensic laboratory to vertically integrate a DNA test and human ID solution that can identify victims, find missing persons, and reveal perpetrators of crimes.<\/p>\n

It was November 2020 when Durham Police received notification that the remains were of Native American descent. Police reached out to Missy\u2019s father, Cary Poitra, to match his DNA sample with the remains.<\/p>\n

\u201cPolice only requested a DNA sample from our family because Othram concluded that their Jane Doe was of Native American descent,\u201d said Jessica. \u201cWe\u2019ve been contacting them for years only to hear \u2018no\u2019.\u201d Jessica is a kindergarten teacher at the Turtle Mountain Community Elementary School in Belcourt.<\/p>\n

The police department also lost Missy\u2019s father\u2019s DNA sample in December 2020 and requested another in January 2021. DNA Solutions, an independent company, identified the remains through comparison with the father\u2019s DNA on April 23. Father Cary received no notification of the DNA match until April 27. According to the family members, police claimed to have no leads on suspects, but that day officials announced they \u201chave a couple of leads.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cOur teachings of culture tell us to hold women on the highest pedestal. We continue to bring awareness to MMIW but start the process of working together to impact this cycle we find ourselves in,\u201d Turtle Mountain Band of Chippewa Tribal Chair Jamie Azure told the Native Sun News Today. \u201cA part of the Turtle Mountains has been taken away much too soon and we demand the accountability of actions. Missy was one person, and one person is too many. Missy will be remembered!\u201d he vowed.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s been a very hard and long few weeks,\u201d said Missy\u2019s daughter Brittani after the announcement. \u00a0Brittani has made numerous calls to the Durham Police Department during the years since the police took charge of the remains. \u201cThis past Mother\u2019s Day was the hardest it has ever been. While everyone spent their days with their moms, mine was cremated because I would not have been able to see her,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

Saint Anthony\u2019s Catholic Church held the funeral and Brittani took the cremated remains to a private location.<\/p>\n

Although the cause of Missy\u2019s death hasn\u2019t been determined, it is being investigated as a homicide. Anyone with information is encouraged to call Durham Police Lieutenant Vaughn or Sergeant Tait at 919-560-4440.<\/p>\n

\u201cI want answers,\u201d said Hetland. \u201cI\u2019m tired of the vagueness.\u201d<\/p>\n

(Contact Darren Thompson darrenjthompson@hotmail.com<\/a>\/)<\/p>\n

The post Remains of missing girl discovered after 15 years<\/a> first appeared on Native Sun News Today<\/a>.<\/p>\n

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When the FBI completed the facial approximation of the skull of Durham\u2019s Jane Doe, the resulting image was that of a white woman with red hair. Police released the drawing to the public and received no credible leads on missing Melissa \u201cMissy\u201d Poitra. BELCOURT, N. D. \u2014 Relatives held a <\/p>\n

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