Parents of missing Shuswap woman plan more searches this summer

The family of a missing Shuswap woman is again back in the Okanagan planning to hold an organized search for their daughter in the near future.

Jane and Dennis Aubertin, parents of missing Shuswap woman Nicole Bell, are in the region determining locations for a future search for the four women who have gone missing in the area in the last three years.

Jane Aubertin told iNFOnews.ca she planned to be back in the area to conduct an organized search for the women at the end of August.

"(Being here) is hard, but we have to do what we have to do," Aubertin said. "We're out here with the hope of finding new leads… to help with the closure for our family."

Aubertin's daughter and mother of three, Nicole Bell was last seen on Sept. 2, 2017, in Sicamous.

Aubertin's said since she was in the region last summer searching for her daughter no new information had come to light. In August 2018, Aubertin and a team of volunteers, as well as the Missing and Murdered Woman Drone Search Team, conducted searches in the Salmon Arm area over several days.

Bell is one of five women to have disappeared from the North Okanagan and Shuswap in the last three years, along with Ashley Simpson, Caitlin Potts, Deanna Wertz and Traci Genereaux. Traci Genereaux's body was found on a Silver Creek farm in the fall of 2017. Curtis Wayne Sagmoen, who lived at the farm, is currently in custody facing several charges involving violence against women.

Aubertin reiterates she is not just searching for her daughter but for all four women still missing.

"So we can all get closure at some point," she said.

Currently, plans for the organized search to be held at the end of August have not yet been finalized. Aubertin is encouraging members of the public to come out and assist with the search. Aubertin said anyone wanting to help can contact her via Facebook here, and she will post details once dates are finalized.

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