Search for missing elder gets help from AI

Mollyanne Jones, Wesley’s daughter, told Buffalo’s Fire that she and her dad had an appointment the following day. “There’s a lot of things about him leaving that don’t really add up,” she said.

She has theories about what happened but said she doesn’t want to share them publicly while the investigation is ongoing. She said that her dad is a survivalist who knows all the canyons, ridges and fishing holes in the area, and she and her siblings have been searching non-stop.

“Our people are coming up missing a lot, and have been for a long time,” she said. “We need to stand together and create more resources.”

Technology to the rescue?

A three-day search for Wesley Jones will take place Oct. 31-Nov. 2, coordinated by the MMIW Search & Hope Alliance out of Portland. The organization’s founder, Kimberly Lining, acknowledges the extensive searching that’s already been carried out by Jones’s family.

“I know there’s been people out there on horseback. I know that his daughter … and their family and other volunteers have been out there, kayaking the shallows of the river,” said Lining.

But Lining is also excited about testing out a new handheld sonar device: the AquaEye Pro, which the company has given her on a trial basis for two weeks.

“The AquaEye Pro is a one-of-a-kind artificial intelligence AI water sonar,” said Lining. “The AI program is built to recognize human remains, and that is what we are going to take down on the deep pockets of the Umatilla [River]. If Mr. Jones is in the water, this will find him.”

According to informational materials sent to Buffalo’s Fire, AquaEye Pro sends a sonar pulse into a body of water, which then echoes off of underwater objects. Those echoes bounce back to the AquaEye Pro. The device then determines if the echoes match those that would be made by a human body and provides the location and distance of the suspected body in the water, cutting down on search and rescue time.

This won’t be the first time the company’s technology has been used for an MMIP case. AquaEye’s marketing manager, Wylie Spencer, said they’ve had eight Native/Indigenous organizations in Canada and the U.S. as customers.

He added that AquaEye “has been the key piece of tech” that’s located missing people throughout the continent in 135 cases.

“These are just the results that have been reported back to us, so the number is certainly larger,” he said.

Lining says the device has potential to be a game changer in MMIP search efforts. She’s done some training with the AquaEye and will don chest waders and go into the Umatilla River to search for Wesley Jones.

“Hopefully, if it does successfully locate someone, maybe somebody will be kind enough to gift us the equipment permanently,” said Lining. The particular AquaEye Pro she’s trying out retails for roughly $29,000.

Beyond the underwater effort, search efforts on land and the water’s surface will continue, says Jones.

Her father is described as 140 lbs. and 5 feet, 8 inches tall. He has long black hair and brown eyes, and was last seen wearing a black and red Tigerscott jacket (with a “T” and “S” on the front), black shirt and sweatpants and tan boots. A relative said he was carrying a Shakespeare fishing rod.

Jones said she’s hopeful that the sonar-AI device can speed up the search for her father and urges everyone in the CTUIR to be accountable for one another and let people know where they’re going at all times.

“We all need to stay in prayer and unity as tribal people,” she said.

Umatilla Tribal Police Department Detective William Morris said they’ve previously coordinated with the Umatilla County Sheriff’s Office’s Search and Rescue Team on three drone searches of the area and a two-day search that involved volunteers and tracking and cadaver dogs. And while not directly associated with the MMMIW Search & Hope Alliance, they’ll be providing support for them over the Halloween holiday weekend.

“As we move forward in the investigation, we’re keeping an open mind and not jumping to any conclusions,” said Morris. “Foul play has not been ruled in or out.”

The UTPD is asking anyone with relevant video footage to share it with investigators.

As of Oct. 27, 20 volunteers had signed up for this weekend’s search. Lining is hoping twice that many show up.

Morris figures the search area for Jones will be no less than ten square miles and encourages anyone with information to contact the UTPD at 541-278-0550 or him directly at 541-969-7139.