Vancouver police, family members call for public assistance in locating missing Indigenous woman

The mother of 20-year-old Tatyanna Harrison, an Indigenous woman who went missing in late April, is calling for public assistance as Vancouver police say they have no solid leads in the case.

Harrison was last seen in Vancouver's Downtown Eastside neighbourhood on April 22at the Grand Union Pub on Abbott and Hastings Street. She last spoke to her mother, Natasha, on March 24 over a text message.

However, the 20-year-old didn't pick up her social assistance cheque at the end of April. She was reported missing on May 3, and has not been found nearly two months later.

Natasha Harrison said in a statement that she was "putting out a plea" for the public to help find her daughter.

"Tatyanna is a very strong and beautiful girl that's a voice for people who suffer, or people who don't have one," she said.

"She's articulate, she's smart, she's an avid reader, she's fearless," she added.

Tatyanna Harrison is described as having brown eyes and is approximately five feet one inch tall, often wearing prescription glasses and baggy clothes. She was last seen with medium-length auburn hair, though investigators note her hairstyle may have since changed.

"It is out of character for Tatyanna to have gone so long without speaking to her friends and family, who tell us her failure to reach out is an indication Tatyanna is in danger," said Cst. Tania Visintin in a statement.

Natasha Harrison also acknowledgedthe Downtown Eastside community, saying they havebeenvery supportive of her search for her daughter and helped putup missing-person posters in the neighbourhood.

Timeline of disappearance

Harrison was in Surrey, B.C. until Feb. 3, according to the VPD. From Feb. 9 to 22, she stayed at a shelter at875 Terminal Avenue in Vancouver.

On March 23, Harrison visited the Royal Bank of Canada branch in the Downtown Eastside to report a stolen card.

She subsequently got another card, and was seen at the bank with an unidentified man,described as 30 to 40 years old with a slim build, a moustache and stubble on his face. He was last seen wearing a two-toned dark jacket, a dark hooded sweater, and a dark-colored toque.

Police say the man is being treated as a witness and not a suspect in the disappearance.

A day later, Tatyannasent her mother Natasha a message from a new number the last time Tatyanna's mother heard from her daughter. Police say the message was sent from somewhere in the Downtown Eastside.

After that message, Tatyanna was seen "numerous" times, including on April 7 in Robson Park and on April 22 at the Grand Union Pub.

Anyone with information on her disappearance is asked to call604-717-2530, email vpd.missing@vpd.ca, or leave an anonymous tip with Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-8477.