Community gathers in Mesa one year after teen’s killing, demanding justice for Emily Pike

MESA, Ariz. — One year after 14-year-old Emily Pike was found dead in Gila County, community members gathered Saturday at the intersection of Mesa Drive and McKellips Road to honor her memory and demand justice.

A memorial at the busy Mesa intersection has grown steadily over the past year, filled with flowers, photos and messages remembering the San Carlos Apache teen. Loved ones and supporters stood arm in arm during a memorial walk, calling for accountability and greater awareness of violence against Native American women and girls.

RELATED: The family of Emily Pike announces two permanent memorial sites for slain teen

Drums echoed through the intersection as participants chanted Emily’s name.

For family members like Kristopher Dosela, the loss remains raw.

“It’s really upsetting, it’s sad, and it’s definitely a struggle each and every day to know that this is turning into a cold case,” Dosela said.

Dosela said his motorcycle club, Red Rum, sponsored Emily in December 2024 after she was placed in a Mesa group home. He later learned the teenager was his niece.

“We have to make sure that this doesn’t happen again. We can’t let people who get these sinister ideas know that they can’t get away with this kind of stuff. And so that’s why it’s important to resolve this,” he said.

Saturday’s walk was organized by Jared Marquez, who led participants west along McKellips Road before circling back east. His chants focused on visibility and accountability.

“I want to be mad. I want to go down the dark path, and I want my own type of justice. In reality, I cried because it hurts. It hurts to know in the manner she was found, and you can only imagine what she had been through to be found like that,” Marquez said.

Emily’s family has now waited a full year for answers: Who killed the young San Carlos Apache girl? Who placed her remains in black trash bags and left them in a rural area northeast of Globe?

Those questions continue to weigh heavily on the community, as loved ones push investigators to pursue every possible lead.

“It’s very rare for a person not to know the person to do the crime, especially something so heinous. If you know true crime and history out here Mesa, you know, a lot of people have been trafficked out here, and nothing has been done still,” Marquez said.

“There’s people involved. But again, to what extent are they? Are they going above and beyond to help give this little girl justice?” Dosela questioned.

Emily’s murder remains under investigation by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Gila County Sheriff’s Office. No suspects or persons of interest have been publicly identified.

Authorities say a $200,000 reward remains available for information that leads to an arrest in the case.

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