Remains of Aubrey Dameron found in Oklahoma nearly 6 years after disappearance
“Where is she?”
It’s a question Christian Fencer has asked many times over the past six years since his niece, Aubrey Dameron, vanished.
The 25-year-old was last seen on March 9, 2019, near Grove, part of the Cherokee Nation of Oklahoma.
“Where is she? I lose hope, but at the same time I see stories of people being found after years of being missing, after months of being missing and I just, I hold on to hope that maybe — maybe, just maybe, everything will fall into place someday and we’ll get Aubrey back,” Christian told Andrea Canning on Season 1 of the Dateline: Missing in America podcast in 2022.
Dateline first spoke with Aubrey’s aunt, Pam Smith, in September 2021, who noted the difficulties Aubrey’s case faced. “It’s high-risk to be Native and missing, and high-risk to be transgender and missing,” she said. “And Aubrey was both.”
Pam and Christian are Aubrey’s mother Jen Byrd’s siblings. They have acted as spokespeople for the family for more than five years and are spearheading the search for answers.
Earlier this week they got one.
The Quapaw Nation Marshal Service sent out a media release on Wednesday, February 5, 2025, stating that on January 31, they responded to a call “regarding the discovery of human remains located near South 565 Road and East 30 Road, north of Commerce in rural Ottawa County, Oklahoma.” The area is about a 40-minute drive from where Aubrey was last seen.
The Oklahoma Medical Examiner’s Office responded to the scene and collected the remains, which were brought back to the office for further examination and identification. “Due to the condition of the remains, they appeared to have been at the location for an undetermined period of time,” the release states.
Less than a week after the remains were located, they were positively identified as belonging to Aubrey Dameron. The Marshal Service stated that the family was notified of the identification, and they extended their “sincere condolences to Aubrey’s family and friends as the past six (6) long years of searching for Aubrey has come to an end.”
Cherokee Nation Principal Chief Chuck Hoskin Jr. also issued a statement. “After nearly six years missing, our Cherokee Nation citizen Aubrey Dameron has been recovered today. Our thoughts and prayers are with her Aunt Pam and Uncle Christian, who always put Aubrey’s missing persons case, and all MMIP cases, in the forefront where it belonged,” he wrote. “Aubrey, who was extremely proud of her Cherokee culture, had a bright future and her young life was cut too short. Our Marshals led many searches for her, erected billboards to help find her, and helped raise awareness on her case.”
Hoskin Jr. finished his statement by saying, “We know her family is in mourning, and Deputy Chief [Bryan Warner] and I, and the entire tribe, offer our condolences and support to her family and friends during this difficult time. Rest in peace dear Aubrey.”
On Wednesday, February 5, a post was shared on the Facebook page dedicated to spreading awareness about Aubrey’s case, confirming “that the remains found near Picher are that of Aubrey.” They expressed their gratitude, as well. “Thank you to everyone who has helped along the way. Please give us time to process at this time,” the post reads.
The investigation into Aubrey’s death is ongoing. Neither the cause nor manner of death was listed in the media release from the Quapaw Nation Marshal Service.
Anyone with information about Aubrey’s case is asked to call the Quapaw Nation Marshal Service at 918-238-3137 or Central Dispatch at 918-542-5585.
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