A 14-year-old girl named Emily Pike was tragically found dismembered on the side of a road in Arizona after disappearing from a group home in Mesa. The body camera footage revealed that Emily had expressed her dislike for the group home to police during a previous incident in 2023. She had run away from the facility multiple times, showing her strong aversion to being there.
In the newly released bodycam footage from September 20, 2023, Emily can be seen walking along a canal when an officer approaches her and asks her to stop. Tearfully, she tells the officer that she does not want to go back to the group home and pleads to see her mother. She expresses her desire to live with her grandmother instead, emphasizing her dissatisfaction with the facility.
Despite her repeated attempts to escape from the group home, Emily was either returned to the home or taken to a behavioral health center within hours of being reported missing in 2023. Another bodycam recording from the day she went missing more than a year later shows a group home employee informing the police about her disappearance, noting that she had gone missing before.
Tragically, Emily’s remains were discovered on the side of a dirt road off of US 60. It took authorities weeks to confirm her identity, and her autopsy results revealed visible face and head trauma. Her body was found dismembered, with her head and torso in large bags and her legs in separate bags. However, her arms and hands were missing, adding to the gruesome nature of the crime.
Despite identifying three suspects in the brutal murder, no arrests have been made as of yet. The Mesa Police Department, FBI, and Bureau of Indian Affairs have formed a task force to track down Emily’s killer. Her devastated mother, Steff Dosela, described Emily as an innocent child who did not deserve such a horrific fate.
During a legislative hearing on group home protocol, the Department of Child Safety revealed that Emily was under the care of Tribal Social Services and placed in the group home by the tribe. The group home had alerted the police and Tribal Social Services about Emily’s disappearance, but CPS was hesitant to take action due to her past behaviors.
The tragic death of Emily Pike sheds light on the challenges faced by vulnerable children in the foster care system and the importance of ensuring their safety and well-being. It is a heartbreaking reminder of the need for better oversight and protection for children in group homes and foster care.
