The family of an 18-year-old woman whose remains were discovered on a rural property near Salmon Arm, B.C. has joined Mounties in their plea for information about what happened to the missing teen.
Police confirmed Wednesday night that remains discovered on the 24-acre farm in October belonged to Traci Genereaux, who went missing in the area earlier this year. Her sister, Kayla Nixon, posted a childhood photo on Facebook shortly after in memory of the teenager.
“Rest in peace. You are my best friend and world. I’m hoping you’re in a better place,” Nixon wrote.
According to her family, Genereaux lived the last few years of her life in the grips of drug addiction. She also worked in the sex trade.
Her father, Darcy Genereaux, said she was last seen near a Vernon bottle depot on May 29. Mounties asked him for a blood sample last week as they worked to identify the remains.
Genereaux’s grandfather told CTV News Thursday he hopes anyone with information will come forward.
Several others also took to social media to pay tribute to the young woman.
“My heart goes out to the family of Traci Genereaux,” Lee-Ann Worden-Breitkreutz wrote in a Facebook post. “I remember Traci and her siblings from West Vernon and Traci also went to high school with my girls. No one should have to go through what her family is going through.”
No charges have been laid in connection with Genereaux’s death, but investigators said in a statement Wednesday they are treating it as suspicious.
Cpl. Dan Moskaluk said an autopsy has been performed, but the results will not be made public. Police have not released any information on the cause of her death.
The update comes amid a large-scale investigation launched Oct. 19, on a 24-acre farm located between Salmon Arm and Vernon. Two days later, police confirmed human remains had been discovered.
By Oct. 25, investigators had ramped up efforts, bringing in more equipment and additional forensic specialists to the site.
When asked whether investigators had found remains belonging to anyone other than Genereaux, Moskaluk would only say that “this is an ongoing investigation” involving many RCMP agencies and specialized units.
“There's no set timeline as to the period of time we'll be at the property,” he said. “This is an open investigation, very fluid, and what we want to establish and complete is a thorough and proper search of the property in the most efficient manner possible.”
That search, however, was made even more difficult Thursday when the area was hit by snowfall.
Moskaluk did tell CTV News that RCMP have been in close contact with the families of other women reported missing near the farm since the start of 2016.
The list of missing persons includes 46-year-old Deanna Wertz who vanished near her home on Yankee Flats Road.
Caitlin Potts, 27, lost contact with friends and family in February 2016, while 31-year-old Nicole Bell disappeared in early September.
The grim discovery also came just weeks after a violent incident against a sex worker along the same road. The victim said she was threatened by a man with a gun.
Curtis Wayne Sagmoen, 36, was arrested and charged with seven crimes, including uttering threats and several firearms-related offences.
Locals told CTV News he lives at the Salmon River Road property with his parents.
Court documents also show Sagmoen was in Vernon the day Genereaux was reportedly last seen, but Mounties have not linked him to her disappearance and their reasons for searching the farm are sealed under a warrant.
Sagmoen remains in custody.
Investigators are now working to establish a timeline of Genereaux’s activities leading up to May 29 as well as her whereabouts following that day.
“We plead with those people who might know something and haven’t come forward to think of the individuals involved here,” Moskaluk said.
Anyone with information about her disappearance is asked to contact investigators at a dedicated tip line set up for the Genereaux investigation at 1-877-987-8477.
