This week’s featured missing person is Mary Anne Alexie, an Alaskan Native woman who disappeared from Anchorage on October 10, 2012. Mary had left her home in Fairbanks and traveled to Anchorage to enroll in college, but missed the first day’s classes. In the early morning hours she called her friends and she was in a VERY vulnerable position at the time: drunk, disoriented, and lost in a dangerous city. And that was the last sign of her, from that day to this.
It’s a safe bet that something terrible happened to her.
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Cases like these (and Lauren Spierer, and Hannah Graham, and…) are such cautionary tales for why we need to keep ourselves in check when it comes to alcohol and being alone. That’s not “victim blaming,” because being drunk and vulnerable is NEVER an excuse for anyone to attack someone, but there are unfortunately horrible people out there who prey on women in those situations. Of course, bad things can and do still happen, if the cases on this site are any indication, but the deck is stacked against you when you’re intoxicated.
I was almost raped when I was nineteen or so, at a college party. I hold myself partially responsible for the incident (such as it was; no crime occurred, but that was just sheer dumb luck that it didn’t). If I hadn’t been so incredibly trashed, and drinking in such a way that I couldn’t keep track of how much I was consuming, it would not have happened.
Very familiar with her case, as Cheri had listed her on the forum 10 days after her disappearance. Her sister and family did a commendable job on the first year to keep her name out there.
Israel Keyes did cross my mind when she disappeared.
More news coverage can be found here
http://www.cherigriffiths.com/phpbb3/phpBB3/viewtopic.php?f=87&t=10388&start=0&sid=31a6f711d166eb56623a7a6f897b10e5
Does anyone know what that tattoo says?
Possibly Walsh?
This photo shows the tattoo on her upper right arm, with Mary Ann sitting. She has some bruising on her upper thigh and knee in this photo as well.
From fb page –
https://scontent-atl3-1.xx.fbcdn.net/v/t1.0-9/fr/cp0/e15/q65/545502_294604230641020_505383645_n.jpg?oh=95db3ac927cb8d7f54622232d274e080&oe=59390354
I think it looks more like “Walter”
Thank you both!
I had posted that after a second look I was thinking Walter but that post doesn’t show up, weird.
Also just checked and the blog for Alaska unsilenced has been deleted, as well as the Twitter account too.
No, I had thought Walton, lol, guess I didn’t hit submit.
In case anyone missed my previous comment a few posts back about CBC podcast Missing and Murdered Alberta Williams, it is absolutely a must listen. Focus on missing native women.
Alaska lostnmissing has a Facebook page that features MP from Alaska if anyone has a special interest in the state. Many people go missing in the Alaskan wilderness each year and it’s easy to quickly succumb to the elements. Although, I believe foul play is responsible for Ms. Alexie.
Anchorage is dangerous? Good to know. For some reason–I guess because it’s in Alaska–I thought of it as kind of bohemian and laid-back.
It has one of the highest crime rates in the country right now, though things weren’t quite as bad in 2012. http://www.areavibes.com/anchorage-ak/crime/ At present the violent crime rate in Anchorage is 74% higher than the national average and 41% higher than the Alaska average.
I have a friend who was born and raised in Alaska and lives in Anchorage today, and she theorizes the crime is due to the gender imbalance. Too few men, not enough women. Lots of single guys coming from the lower 48 to strike it rich in oil or whatever. And not much for them to do but drink and cause trouble. That’s what she says, anyway.
I live in Fairbanks, alaska and follow the anchorage news. I used to live in Tampa, Florida and Tampa had a lot more violent crime. Anchorage might be high in petty crime but I don’t think it’s high in violent crime. Alaska in general has a lot of sexual assaults but they are mostly linked to remote villages with limited to no law enforcement. The remoteness and location allows people to prey on children. It’s very sad.
It is VERY high in violent crime. Here is what my friend from Anchorage literally just had to say four minutes ago (we are discussing the topic on Facebook):
“Anchorage is not just a dangerous town….it’s barely seven miles long, and yet is the most dangerous city I’ve ever lived in. And I’ve lived all over the States, in places like Las Vegas, Phoenix, Madison, Seattle… Home invasions are on the rise here, and our vehicle theft is up 73% from 2016….. my feed is flooded with posts on private Alaskan groups about prowlers, peopel casing properties, scamming residents and doing terrifying home invasions, and robberies etc. Some of the victims are tortured outside the usual being tied up and gagged while people rob their homes, having soap poured in their eyes, elderly people forced to strip naked and go outside in freezing temperatures, etc. All kinds of madness.”
Yikes. I haven’t heard any of that on the local news. I was in anchorage twice this summer and fall. We walked everywhere and had no issues. But we weren’t our late at night.
I looked up the locations involved online and noticed two things:
1) The Spenard section of Anchorage is only a couple of miles away from Alaska Career College.
2) There is also a fairly sizable lake (Lake Spenard/Lake Hood) in that section of Anchorage.
I think she went to have “just one” drink before going to her first day of classes, ended up staying out and getting drunk all day and night, and either got a ride from the killer, or ended up falling into the lake and drowning. Either way, my money is on that she’s in the lake.