ESTEVAN - This week, it will be 18 years since Estevan's Courtney Struble was last seen.
Struble disappeared on July 9, 2004. At the time of her disappearance, she was 13 years old. She had been watching movies with friends. When the time came to go home, she declined a ride, opting for a walk. All of her friends and family members claim they've never seen her since.
Struble's disappearance was first treated as a runaway but has later been investigated as a homicide.
Eighteen years later, it is still an unsolved open case with the RCMP’s "F" Division.
In an email to the Mercury, the RCMP confirmed that "this investigation into the disappearance of Courtney Struble continues to be active and ongoing." They said the day after the anniversary of her vanishing, they will be launching a campaign to help with the investigation.
"Beginning on July 10, Courtney's image and information will be featured on digital billboards and police social media channels as part of Project HOME, a new province-wide, multi-jurisdictional campaign that aims to bring attention to long-term missing person cases in Saskatchewan," said RCMP "F" Division in the email.
"The billboards and social media posts, encouraging people to report tips about Courtney's whereabouts, will debut the day after the 18th anniversary of her disappearance. Saskatchewan RCMP has been investigating ever since she was last seen on July 9, 2004.
"Investigators believe there could be individuals who know what happened to Courtney. They also understand that circumstances change and someone who was initially hesitant may now be more comfortable coming forward with information," the RCMP concluded.
Project HOME (Help Our Missing Emerge) – a province-wide, multi-jurisdictional, digital billboard and social media awareness campaign – was launched this May to bring attention to the long-term missing person cases in Saskatchewan.
A number of these people are missing in the Saskatchewan RCMP jurisdiction. Their cases remain open, and officers continue to investigate their disappearances. Their families continue to wait for answers about what happened to their missing loved ones. The goal of this campaign is to raise awareness and generate new tips that can assist Saskatchewan police agencies in helping locate all of these missing individuals.
"How do we draw attention to all those people who remain missing across Saskatchewan to ensure that the public is hearing about them, thinking about them, keeping them top of mind? We, as investigators, are always trying to find new information in regard to each of these individuals; however, we have to rely on the public for information, too. We're hoping these billboards are the key to bringing in some new tips that might assist us," says Sgt. Donna Zawislak of the Saskatchewan RCMP Historical Case Unit.
The seven billboards - located in Regina, Saskatoon, Yorkton, Prince Albert and North Battleford – display the pictures, names and some brief details about the majority of those who remain missing in the province. Additional information about the long-term missing persons cases across Saskatchewan can be found on the Saskatchewan Association of Chiefs of Police (www.sacp.ca/missing-persons.html).
"I can't imagine the anguish the families of those who remain missing must feel every day. We want to remind the public that these missing individuals are loved – their absences have left holes in the hearts of their families and friends. They haven't been and won't be forgotten. We are hopeful that displaying the names and faces of the long-term missing people in Saskatchewan on these billboards will help generate new information that can lead to their return and provide answers for the families who are missing their loved ones endlessly," said assistant commissioner Rhonda Blackmore, Saskatchewan RCMP commanding officer and second vice-president of the SACP.
Project HOME was initiated by two individuals with the Saskatchewan RCMP: Cst. Brendan Sanford, who is the Saskatchewan RCMP missing person co-ordinator, and Vicki Torresan, community program officer with the Saskatchewan RCMP's Crime Prevention/Crime Reduction Unit, who is actively involved in efforts in support of missing and murdered Indigenous women, girls and 2-spirit people.
Both Sanford and Torresan have worked diligently for months to launch this project. They have been in contact with the families whose missing loved ones will be featured on the billboards, ensuring that the families have felt included and informed during this process.
Project HOME was created in partnership with the Saskatoon, Regina and Prince Albert Police Services. The project is supported and funded by the SACP, the Civil Forfeiture Fund and the Department of Justice Victims and Survivors of Crime Week Victims' Fund. The RCMP Heritage Centre has also generously provided the use of its billboard on Dewdney Avenue in Regina.
If you have information about Struble's whereabouts, report it to your local police or to the Saskatchewan RCMP Missing Persons Line at 1-833-502-6861. You can also report information anonymously to Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222 8477 or www.saskcrimestoppers.com.
