MINNEAPOLIS, MN — Families of missing and murdered Indigenous Minnesotans gathered at the Minneapolis American Indian Center on Tuesday for a Day of Remembrance focused on cases that have remained unresolved for years. The event brought together relatives, advocates and state officials as they pressed for more answers and more attention to the crisis.
Donna May Clark was among those in attendance. Her brother, Leo Cortez, disappeared in 1981 after telling her he was excited to come home for the weekend, and she said she waited hours for him in St. Paul before he never arrived.
State leaders back families
Lt. Gov. Peggy Flanagan spoke at the event and praised families and advocates who pushed for creation of Minnesota’s Missing and Murdered Indigenous Relatives Office. She said the effort was meant to keep families from having to repeat traumatic details over and over to be heard.
Flanagan also read from a state proclamation marking May 5, 2026, as Missing and Murdered Indigenous Relatives Awareness Day. She said the crisis should remain visible, especially when some people would rather Indigenous communities remain out of sight.
Numbers show urgency
State data shared at the event showed the crisis is still severe. The Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension said more than 700 Native Americans are reported missing each year, and the MMIR Office said an average of 63 Indigenous Minnesotans were missing on any given day in 2025.
The office also reported 81 missing cases so far in 2026, including 55 females and 26 males. Minnesota’s MMIR specialty license plates have raised at least $150,000 for a reward fund tied to 24 eligible cases, but no investigating agency has requested a payout.
Investigators ask for tips
Officials from the BCA and FBI said the biggest need in these cases is information. The BCA said it cannot track how many tips were tied to the reward fund because they do not flow through the agency, while the FBI said jurisdiction in Indian Country can involve federal, tribal and state authorities depending on the location.
Advocates said the search for answers has to involve more than one agency or one community. Clark said billboards carrying her brother’s face are a reminder that he has not been forgotten, and authorities urged anyone with even small pieces of information to contact law enforcement.
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