:quality(70)/cloudfront-us-east-1.images.arcpublishing.com/adn/XSGCOA2GXBD3FANRRVIR3UXQQI.JPG "Body found in Yukon River presumed to be missing Marshall woman, troopers say")
Alaska State Troopers are investigating the circumstances surrounding the death of a woman who went missing from Marshall in mid-June and was presumed to have died after a body was found more than 100 miles downriver later in the month.
Forty-year-old Kimberly O’Domin was last heard from sometime around June 15, when she called a family member to tell them she had been assaulted while breaking up a fight at a party near her home, according to Jack George, a longtime friend who organized the village’s search efforts. Her family began searching when she could not be contacted or found, according to George.
She was officially reported missing to troopers on June 16.
Village Police Officers in Marshall searched for O’Domin, according to Austin McDaniel, a spokesman for the troopers. George said he helped organize a ground search with volunteers from the village.
The search turned next to the Yukon River. Volunteers from roughly a half-dozen nearby villages dragged the river and searched the banks for O’Domin, George said.
A body was found roughly 30 miles upriver from Emmonak on June 27, troopers said. They announced last week that the State Medical Examiner’s Office determined it was likely O’Domin.
George said he wishes troopers had responded to Marshall immediately when O’Domin was reported missing instead of waiting several days.
Troopers look at the circumstances surrounding such reports and balance responses depending on a number of factors, including if they need to respond to other incidents within the region, said McDaniel. They take missing person reports seriously, especially in rural Alaska, he said.
McDaniel did not directly answer a question over email about whether troopers were immediately aware of the assault accusation that took place before her disappearance.
The State Medical Examiner’s Office determined O’Domin died from drowning, troopers said. Troopers have not found evidence of foul play, McDaniel said.
However, the investigation was handed over to the Alaska Bureau of Investigation because of community concerns about the circumstances surrounding O’Domin’s death, McDaniel said. Troopers had previously visited Marshall, but officials with ABI first responded in person on June 27, McDaniel said.
It would be out of character for O’Domin to leave her family without saying something, George said.
She was a mother of seven and worked as the tribal administrator for the Native Village of Marshall, George said. She was outgoing and always had a positive attitude, he said. Marshall is home to roughly 475 people and O’Domin’s death has hit the tight-knit community hard, George said.
“She was someone you can look up to — someone that will be there to help you with whatever you need done here in the village,” he said.
O’Domin’s family set up a fundraiser to help with funeral expenses and support her children.
McDaniel urged anyone with information pertinent to the investigation to call 907-543-2294 or submit a tip anonymously online or through the AKTips smartphone app.
“We’d definitely like to have additional information if that additional information exists, so that we can follow up on it and ensure that we have a complete report to be able to provide closure to Ms. O’Domin’s family, as well as the community of Marshall as a whole,” he said.
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