Manitoba RCMP say they suspect foul play in the disappearance of 16-year-old Tammy Nattaway of Garden Hill First Nation, who went missing one year ago.
“We have received and followed up on numerous tips and have interviewed more than 100 people as part of this investigation,” said Sgt Gary Bird of RCMP Major Crime Services. “We do suspect foul play in Tammy’s disappearance. Our investigative team is working hard to find answers for Tammy’s family, and we continue to follow up on any and all information received.”
Nattaway went missing July 14, 2020 and was seen by a family member in Garden Hill on July 20, police said last year. Her family reported her missing July 31, 2020, after checking with everyone they knew in Garden Hill, St. Theresa’s Point and Wasagamack First Nation.
More than 300 volunteers and an RCMP search team combed the area for two weeks in August of last year, going house-to-house and through wooded areas and waterways, according to CTV Winnipeg.
Tammy’s mother said it wasn’t like her daughter, who liked to read fiction on her phone and dreamed of being a dentist or maybe even a pilot, to not be in contact.
“I knew she wouldn’t run away,” said Cecile Stephanie Nattaway. “She was timid. She wouldn’t run off. She would barely even walk to the convenience store by herself. We always knew where she was. We knew something else was going on.”
Initially, RCMP said she may have gone to Winnipeg, then said they believed she was still in the Island Lake region. RCMP reviewed all passengers who flew out of the communities around the time Nattaway went missing and determined that it was unlikely she managed to travel to Winnipeg alone.
“We’re all waiting for her to come home,” said her grandmother Lena Harper. “We want answers. We want justice. We will never give up looking for her.”
Tammy has not been active on social media for the past year.
Tammy’s father Bradley Nattaway was described in an RCMP news release as similar to his daughter in that he is quiet.
“We love you,” her father said in a message to Tammy, who is about five feet tall with black hair and brown eyes.
Anyone with information about Nattaway can call Island Lake RCMP at 204-456-2626 or Crime Stoppers anonymously at 1-800-222-8477. Secure tips can also be submitted online at www.manitobacrimestoppers.com.
