The family of missing 17-year-old Jodi Henrickson is looking for new ways to boost a search effort that is bordering on three weeks.
The next step could be a fundraiser to be put toward a reward, said Jodi’s cousin Crystal Henrickson, as the family spent the weekend brainstorming for ideas.
“We were thinking that fundraising will be our next effort,” Crystal said. “We have a couple of different ideas that we have been thinking about, and one is to get more tips that lead to information that brings Jodi home.”
She added some family members have also considered hiring a psychic to join the search.
In the meantime, the family plans to continue posting flyers and raising awareness online. A Facebook group dedicated to finding the Brackendale teen has grown to over 1,300 members.
Jodi was reported missing on June 24 and was last seen June 20 between 4 and 6 a.m. after leaving a Bowen Island house party.
Squamish RCMP Cpl. Dave Ritchie said investigators are on Bowen Island, but there was no active search on Monday (July 6).
“The searches are only done when they determine an area that needs to be searched,” he said, adding professional search teams are still being used because of the rugged terrain.
Ritchie said he’s recently fielded phone calls regarding rumours that Jodi’s body had been found, but they are false.
A rally on Friday night (July 3) at the Horseshoe Bay ferry terminal brought together about two dozen family, friends and searchers, and also yielded a few new ideas.
“We got a couple of different things from people on Bowen Island that we hadn’t heard of, like places to search, but nothing concrete,” Crystal said. “There were people there that hadn’t seen the news or read the newspapers, so being able to hand out flyers to people who didn’t know what was going on was really powerful.”
She added that it’s time to put focus back on the search after recent media attention centred on Jodi’s 20-year-old ex-boyfriend, Gavin Arnott. Reports indicate police filed a “no contact” order against Arnott after he was given a conditional discharge for assaulting Jodi on April 8. Police said the ex-boyfriend was interviewed after the disappearance and no charges were laid.
“There are no suspects in this case, and being negative and talking about something that’s just a what-if possibility really doesn’t do our or Gavin’s family any good,” Crystal said.
Jodi is 5’3 and has long dark hair. She was last seen wearing a black leather jacket, black shirt and blue jeans. Anyone with information is asked to contact the RCMP tip line at 604-957-0516 or Crimestoppers at 1-800-222-TIPS.
