CANADA Canada- 'Frank Gruben, 30, student & member of the 2SLGBTQ+ community, Fort Smith, N.W.T, 5 May 2023

[dotr]

The last known photo of Frank Gruben at the snake pits in Fort Smith. (Submitted by Steven Gruben)


Jenna Dulewich · CBC · Posted: May 26, 2023 lengthy article.

https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/north/frank-gruben-family-pleas-1.6855144

''Frank Gruben has a smile that could light up any room.

The oldest of his siblings, Gruben — a Gwich'in Inuvialuit who was born and raised in Aklavik, N.W.T. — is described as someone who loves learning, teaching Gwich'in, and making people laugh with his silly gestures and behaviour.

Gruben is currently missing from Fort Smith, N.W.T. No one has seen him for the last 20 days.

"I just really wish and hope that someone would come forward if they have any information regarding what happened to my brother or the whereabouts or where we could find him," said Steven Gruben, Frank's brother.''

Frank was in Fort Smith attending post-secondary school at the time of his disappearance. Steven said his brother left Aklavik last August. As far as the family knew, Frank was enjoying his time in the South Slave and spoke about making it his home.

"We thought he had really good friends and everything there, so we never really thought anything," Steven said.

Frank's mother was the last immediate family member to speak to Frank, Steven said. She last called him on May 3, the day before Frank turned 30.''

''Deeply involved with his culture and a member of the 2SLGBTQ+ community, Steven said his brother loves his elders, had the most fun on the local radio station in Aklavik, and is an inspiration to his baby sister Kimberlyn.

"Frank was a kind-hearted, handsome young man. Always willing to help anyone who asked for help," Steven said''

As the search continues, the family is sending out a plea to anyone with information to come forward.''

"There's so many people that are heartbroken, and many, a lot of them, miss my brother — including me. I just want him home," Steven said.

Anyone with information about Frank Gruben is asked to call the Fort Smith RCMP at 867-872-1111 or Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-TIPS (8477).''

 

[dotr]

Update: Community search for Frank Gruben enters its second day - CKLB Radio

Last updated Friday, May 12 at 12:05 a.m. The search continues for Frank Gruben in Fort Smith, and a community-led search party is out for the second time t ...

cklbradio.com

A map of Fort Smith used by the search party, with sectors of the town marked in Yellow and the starting point for the first day marked by CKLB in red. (Facebook photo)

Frank Gruben, 30 is Missing

Last seen on 05/05/2023 from Fort Smith, NT X0E, Canada. Contact Fort Smith detachment at at 867-872-1111 with info. #FortSmith, #NT, #FortSmithRCMP, #Reddrumalert, #MissingPerson, #Missingincanada, #NoMoreStolenBrothers, #MMIMB, #Aboriginalalert, #RCMP, #Police, #CrimeStoppers. Missing...

www.aboriginalalert.ca

''Frank Gruben​

AGE	30
GENDER	Male
STATUS	Missing
MISSING SINCE	05/05/2023
DEMOGRAPHIC	Inuit
WHO TO CONTACT	Fort Smith detachment at
CALL	867-872-1111
REFERENCE #

LOCATION: Fort Smith, NT X0E, Canada​

---

Description​

• EYES: Brown
• HAIR: Black
• HEIGHT: 6'1"
• NOTICEABLE CHARACTERISTICS: Not released
• LOCATION LAST SEEN: Have you seen Frank Gruben?
• Fort Smith RCMP have asked for the public’s help to find Frank Gruben. Frank was last seen May 05,2023 he was last seen in Fort Smith, NT

Anyone with information about Gruben’s whereabouts to contact the Fort Smith detachment at 867-872-1111 or leave a tip via Crime Stoppers .No further information was released.

TAGS: #FortSmith, #NT, #FortSmithRCMP, #Reddrumalert, #MissingPerson, #Missingincanada, #NoMoreStolenBrothers, #MMIMB, #Aboriginalalert, #RCMP, #Police, #CrimeStoppers''

 

[CastlesBurning]

https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/north/sydney-lecky-gruben-search-police-priorities-1.6896592

The head of RCMP in the N.W.T. says he hears Frank Gruben's family's pain in having a loved one still missing.

The Gwich'in Inuvialuit man has been missing for about two months and was last seen in Fort Smith, N.W.T.

Gruben's family has criticized the police's efforts in trying to find him. RCMP have said they have repeatedly called for information from the public and continue investigating.

"If you don't find the family member, the loved one, nothing you do will be enough," said RCMP Chief Supt. Sydney Lecky. "We understand that and I appreciate it."

Still, he added that all of the police's leads so far have been "exhausted."

"I can tell you that we've had a consultation with experts within the policing world from Ottawa right through to British Columbia to try and engage other supports," Lecky said.

 

[CastlesBurning]

Still missing...

MLA renews call for information on Frank Gruben

 

[dotr]

Aastha Sethi·September 30, 2023

‘We don’t forget those we love. We want Frank to be found.’

No matter how many months pass, friends and family of missing Frank Gruben – "beautiful, inside and out" – say their determination to find him is undimmed.

cabinradio.ca

''Almost five months since Frank Gruben went missing, his brother, Steven, is still seeking answers about his whereabouts from authorities.​

“I feel like we’re on standby mode,” Steven Gruben said by phone on Friday. “It’s either going to be like this for the rest of our lives, or until we find my brother.”

Frank, 30, who is Inuvialuit and Gwich’in, grew up in Aklavik before moving to study in Fort Smith. His disappearance from the town – he was last seen on May 6 – has been followed by weeks of investigation and volunteer-led searches.

Cpl Matt Halstead, an NWT RCMP spokesperson, said the investigation into Frank’s disappearance is ongoing but no new information has come in.

“We don’t know where to look,” Halstead said. “We don’t know who else to speak with.”

''If you have information that can help locate Frank, RCMP ask that you call the Fort Smith detachment at 867-872-1111. You can also call Crime Stoppers anonymously at 1-800-222-8477.''

 

[Unsolved]

After reading this section of the article in the OP I can better understand the family frustration with LE (BBM):

"The pain is deep for the family, as this is not the first family member to go missing in the South Slave.

Frank Stewart, grandfather of Frank and Steven Gruben, went missing in Hay River years before they were born.

Stewart was attending a Dene Nation meeting in Hay River in 1983 when he was reported missing. RCMP confirmed the missing person file is still active."

1983 to 2023 and their poor family is praying both will be found. Sigh.

 

[airportwoman]

In the meantime, this area has been ravaged by wildfires.

"2S" as a sexual identity means "Two Spirit", used to describe North American Indigenous people who identify as neither fully male nor female.

 

[dotr]

Oct 4 2023

https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/north/frank-gruben-1.6986630

"I was speaking to his mom today," Jacobson said. "'Frank was such a lovable person,' she says. Always laughing, having a good time. He loved the Gwich'in language. He loved his family. He was harmless. Frank would never hurt anyone. Mr. Speaker. For him to go missing without any reason doesn't make no sense."

Jacobson asked Justice Minister R.J. Simpson to begin a new search for Gruben before winter sets in and to ensure that the RCMP are updating the family.

"I need a plan, a go-forward plan, so I could give it to his mother," he said. "So I'm requesting the minister to pick up the phone, either today or tomorrow, just to get the update, so we could update the family.''

Jacobson urged anyone with information about Gruben's disappearance to call the Fort Smith RCMP at 867-872-1111 or Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-8477.''

 

[dotr]

https://www.aptnnews.ca/national-news/frank-gruben-the-night-he-went-missing/

Frank Gruben working on Gwich’in language radio program in Aklavik, NWT. December 2017. Photo courtesy: Franz Krause.
By Karli Zschogner Jan 29, 2024
''This story is part one of an APTN Investigates series into the disappearance of Frank Gruben. It discusses missing persons and emotionally difficult events. If you’d like to talk to someone after reading this story for any reason, you can call the Hope for Wellness line at 1-855-242-3310.

---

On the night of May 6, 2023, two days after his 30th birthday, Frank Gruben vanished without a trace from the town of Fort Smith, Northwest Territories.

“It’s nothing our family would ever wish upon anyone,” says Frank’s younger brother Steven Gruben at the family home in the remote Western Arctic community of Aklavik, N.W.T. “It’s devastating to try to live every day without my brother.”

There are currently 80 active missing persons cases in the NWT with Frank’s being the most recent, according to the RCMP.''

 

[iusedtofloat]

According to Jackson and Kotokak, the transition from a small community to college life was difficult for Frank.

On Dec. 5, 2022, Frank was evicted from his residence at Aurora College over noise complaints. At the time, he was staying at the campus’ dorm-style Breynat Hall – a repurposed former residential school.

“When you’re struggling with a roof over your head, a place and stability, it eventually falls back on your education,” Jackson says. “Eventually, Frank started missing more classes and ended up not coming back to school which personally angered me as a student and as a close friend of Frank’s, because I really don’t want these young people to fail in school.”

Jackson even offered to have Frank stay in her student residency apartment, but says she was denied by Aurora College.

“I was told, if a student gets kicked out of their residency, I’m not allowed to take them in,” Jackson recalls. “It’s against policy. So, in my head, I was like, so we’re just going to leave them homeless? It just doesn’t make sense, especially during the wintertime when it’s cold.”

APTN asked for comment from Aurora College. In July, acting president Jeff O’Keefe confirmed that Frank was no longer a student when he went missing on May 6. He also stated members of the college community have cooperated with the RCMP investigation.

In multiple follow-ups, Investigates asked representatives of Aurora College to confirm the existence of a policy that forbids students from taking in other students who have been evicted from College housing. As of publication, the College has not yet responded to these requests, and APTN has not found a copy of the policy online.

Jackson explained to APTN that after being told she could not take Frank in, he began to drift from place to place.

“When you become homeless, you become desperate and destitute to have a roof over your head,” Jackson says.

“He just went house to house,” Kotokak confirms. “He always had these bags with them, with clothes.”

--
Wow... I wonder if his family can sue the school.... this is disgusting and heartbreaking

 

[dotr]

Lengthy article..

https://www.aptnnews.ca/national-news/frank-gruben-the-rcmp-response-and-the-need-for-missing-persons-legislation/

By Karli Zschogner Jan 31, 2024
''Unknown sender creates unusual hurdle for investigation

---

At 11:39 p.m., on May 8, just over an hour after Anne Jackson filed the missing persons report, Laura Kalinek received a text message from an unknown number saying it was Frank and that he needed picking up because he can’t miss court the next day.

The message said he “got charged with sexual assault.” APTN has tried contacting the number and has left a message. APTN also spoke with Cpl. Matt Halstead, a media relations officer for the N.W.T. RCMP about the strange message. Halstead says that investigators are aware of the text.

“Frank Gruben does not have any charges outstanding for sexual assault,” says Halstead.

He says one major barrier to the investigation is the fact that Frank didn’t have a personal cell phone. Family and friends have confirmed that someone smashed Frank’s phone between January and February, so he had no active personal phone data plan.''

 

[dotr]

Feb 27 2024 Natalie Pressman · rbbm

https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/north/nwt-missing-persons-act-legislation-1.7126441

''The Northwest Territories may soon pass legislation to help RCMP find missing persons by accessing additional documents and records.

The territory committed to exploring a Missing Persons Act in 2020 and it was brought back into the spotlight after the disappearance of Frank Gruben last spring.

Gruben, a 30-year old Gwich'in Inuvialuit man, was last seen in Fort Smith, N.W.T., on May 6, 2023.''

'The draft legislation says that the act would allow RCMP, with court approval, to access cell phone records that may indicate the device's location, travel and accommodation records, as well as personal health and financial records.''

 

[GuyfromCanada]

JUN 12, 2024

Gruben has been missing from Fort Smith for over a year. His case raised questions about the RCMPs ability to investigate such cases and underscored the growing statistic that is missing Indigenous peoples.

His case helped prompt the development of a NWT Missing Persons Act, which will address some of the roadblocks the Mounties said they often encounter with such cases.

More at 'I don't want them to forget about Frank being missing,' says mom Laura Kalinek - CKLB Radio