Chilliwack – Mark Strahl, Member of Parliament for Chilliwack—Hope issued the following statement in support of Alina Durham’s petition to the House of Commons in Ottawa to expand AMBER Alerts to adults:
“Chilliwack’s Alina Durham has been working tirelessly to bring attention to the issue of adult missing persons in Canada. Her 23-year-old daughter Shaelene Keeler Bell was reported missing on January 30, 2021. The search for Shaelene ended in tragedy when her body was discovered four months later.”
“Alina has used her personal tragedy to draw attention to a gap in Canada’s missing persons protocols. Right now, AMBER Alerts are only issued if the victim is under the age of 18. There is no AMBER Alert system for adults.
“To honour Shaelene’s memory, I’ve introduced a private member’s motion M-89 which calls on the government to work with the provinces and territories to expand protections for victims of crime over the age of 18 by amending the criteria for the activation of an AMBER Alert for missing persons.
“In Canada, we need to do better when it comes to finding missing persons. I hope that my motion M-89 will start an important conversation in addressing this problem. If you support my motion, consider signing Alina’s online petition.
“Thank you to Alina for her advocacy for missing adults and I hope that people across Chilliwack—Hope and across Canada will join me in supporting my private member’s motion and Alina’s petition in honour of Shaelene.”
Those interested in signing the House of Commons petition e-4767 can do so at the following website:
