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WINDOW ROCK, Ariz. — More than 70 missing people in the Navajo Nation, which covers a portion of southeastern Utah, are highlighted in an updated list provided by the Navajo Police Department.
The police department, based in Window Rock, Arizona, provided a new version of the list on Monday as part of ongoing efforts to locate the 73 individuals, some missing since the 1970s. The total in the updated poster reflects a decline of six since the Jan. 17 release of the previous version of the poster, which had 79 names.
"The poster is produced with hopes that the information will be widely distributed among communities and possibly lead to new information that may help find missing loved ones," reads a post on the Navajo Police Department Facebook page. A department representative couldn't immediately be reached for comment.
The Navajo Nation covers some 27,000 square miles in southeast Utah, northeast Arizona and northwest New Mexico. The 73 missing people — 22 females and 51 males — are spread across its seven districts, including the two districts that extend into Utah, Kayenta and Shiprock. Those with information on the individuals may call the Navajo Police Department tip line at 928-686-8563 or send an email to tips.npd@navajo-nsn.gov.
American Indian and Alaska Native people face "a disproportionate risk" of facing violence, being murdered or going missing, according to the U.S. Department of the Interior Bureau of Indian Affairs. They account for "a significant portion of the missing and murdered cases."
"For decades, Native American and Alaska Native communities have struggled with high rates of assault, abduction and murder of tribal members. Community advocates describe the crisis as a legacy of generations of government policies of forced removal, land seizures and violence inflicted on Native peoples," reads a Bureau of Indiana Affairs website on the issue.
The Navajo Police Department's Instagram page contains numerous posts highlighting missing individuals and others who had been missing but were later located.
