Three days before Christmas, a crowd of people lifted handmade signs into the air as they left the Fairbanks Native Movement Center, a nonprofit organization focused on community education and social justice advocacy.
As they headed deeper into downtown, singing and beating drums, the wind picked up, blowing bits of snow into everybody’s faces. Among them was Sandy Koyukuk, the grandmother of 21-year-old Devin Standifer, who vanished from Fairbanks on Dec. 7.
Koyukuk said her family and friends have been searching every day and night.
“We want to be positive, we want to bring him home,” she said. “He’s a top five varsity basketball player, number 22. He’s well-loved, he’s Alaska Native. Right now, we just need to hear from him.”
For some in the community, Standifer’s disappearance has touched on historical frustrations with the high rates of missing and murdered Indigenous people across the United States. And some have voiced concerns that local law enforcement is neglecting Standifer’s case, and other missing persons cases like his.
"Not just a Fairbanks problem"
Standifer has dark brown eyes and hair, is 6 feet tall and weighs about 180 pounds. He was last seen leaving his aunt's house near the Fairbanks Memorial Hospital on Dec. 7.
A day earlier, Standifer had been named a person of interest in a sexual assault case at the residence where he was last seen. Fairbanks police have since identified him as the suspect. He has not been charged with a crime and has no criminal record.
Indigenous people across the United States are reported missing or are murdered at rates that are far higher than the national average. There are currently several open cases of Indigenous people who have gone missing from Fairbanks and surrounding communities. Some have remained unsolved for years.
The state has tried to improve its response in recent years. Last fall, Gov. Mike Dunleavy signed a bill into a law intended to combat the crisis. Senate Bill 151 will, among other things, create a review commission for unsolved cases and mandate cultural training for new police officers. It went into effect Jan 1.
But some at the march expressed doubt that local police were doing everything they could to find him, or to keep his family updated on the case. Sky Sommer-Griffin, who helped organize the march, said it feels like part of a larger pattern.
"It’s not just a Fairbanks problem — but it is a very big problem in Fairbanks," she said. "There are Native people going missing all the time."
No updates, but Fairbanks Police Chief says investigators are still working behind the scenes
Members of Standifer’s family told KUAC that they don't feel supported by local police response. But Fairbanks Police Chief Ron Dupee said investigators are working in ways that the community can’t necessarily see.
"Just because we’re not out knocking on doors or those sorts of things — it doesn’t mean we’re not working on the case," he said. "We have some pieces of clothing, and a cell phone, and those sorts of things that we’re running leads on. This case is a priority for us. All missing persons cases become a priority."
Dupee said it can be hard to keep entire families informed about the progress of the search, but that the department is doing its best.
"If we have 20 people calling a detective trying to figure out what’s going on with the case, it can get quite overwhelming," he said. "We have a point-of-contact with the family. Normally, that’s one or two people that our department will contact — and they’re the point-of-contact for the rest of the family."
Sandy Koyukuk, Standifer’s grandmother, is the Fairbanks Police Department’s main point of contact for search updates. She confirmed that local police left her voicemails about the search shortly after her grandson’s disappearance. But as the days went on, she said the updates dried up.
"They haven’t even sat with us, or anything like that," she said. "A person doesn’t just disappear out of nowhere. They said he could be in hiding, but he can’t be without his family for more than two hours. Especially in this cold weather."
Koyukuk said the march for her missing grandson meant more than just sending a message to local law enforcement — it meant keeping the community aware.
"We're trying to make sure they hear us, because we’re Devin’s voice now," said Koyukuk. "He’s not here to protect himself, to speak up."
If you have any information about Devin Standifer’s missing persons case, you can share it with Fairbanks Police Department dispatch at (907)450-6500.