Maleeka Boone, 8, was found dead Friday on Navajo Nation tribal lands in northern Arizona, one day after she was reported missing in the Coalmine Canyon area, authorities said. The FBI and Navajo Police Department are jointly investigating her death; an FBI spokesperson declined to provide details about the circumstances.
Maleeka’s death came as Native American communities continue to face a disproportionate rate of disappearances and violent deaths — a crisis that prompted Arizona to establish the Turquoise Alert system for missing Native Americans.
Discovery and investigation
Navajo Nation officials said Maleeka was last seen Thursday evening in the Coalmine Canyon area, located approximately 240 miles north of Phoenix. A Turquoise Alert was issued after her disappearance.
An FBI spokesperson declined to provide details of her death. A Navajo Police Department spokesperson said the department had no further information to release.
Officials respond
Navajo Nation President Buu Nygren said Maleeka’s death was devastating. “This tragedy weighs heavy on my heart,” Nygren said in a social media video.
Turquoise Alert and Emily’s Law
Arizona’s Turquoise Alert is an alert system for Native Americans who have gone missing. The legislation creating it is referred to as “Emily’s Law,” to honor Emily Pike, a young woman whose remains were found Feb. 14 more than 100 miles from a group home she had left in Mesa, Arizona.
Pike’s death spurred a resurgence of activism aimed at raising awareness of the disproportionate number of disappearances and violent deaths that have affected Native American communities for decades, and prompted lawmakers to amend the bill to recognize her.