disappearance of Immaculate Basil

Immaculate "Mackie" Mary Basil is an indigenous Canadian woman who went missing early on Friday, June 14, 2013, near the Kuz Che Indian Reserve, north of Fort St. James in British Columbia, Canada, aged 27. It was reported that she had last been seen with her cousin and another man leaving a house party. Her disappearance is considered uncharacteristic of her personality.

Life before disappearance The daughter of Samuel Basil and Patricia Joseph, Immaculate Mary "Mackie" Basil had a son, Jamison, who was 5 years old when she disappeared. Basil had three sisters and three brothers: Crystal, Ida, Samantha (deceased), Nick, Peter, and Travis (deceased). Basil was born on December 8, 1985, which is also the Roman Catholic Feast of the Immaculate Conception. It is likely the date influenced her name.

Basil grew up in the foster care system with her sisters Ida and Crystal. Ida has said that their experience there bonded them; they called each other daily at 10 am. Mackie was part of the Tl'azt'en Nation, based out of Tachie, south of the Kuz Che Reserve. Basil lived in Fort St. James at the time of her disappearance, working part-time as a secretary and as a teacher's assistant at a school. She had recently split from her long-time partner, the father of Jamison.

Basil attended a house party on Thursday, June 13, 2013, in Tachie. It is not public knowledge who also was at the party that night, or how many people were there, but Vanessa Joseph believes that it was mostly Basil's cousins. One cousin Keith, and a man named Victor, who was known to Vanessa, were also there. The party was at a house that was a 20-minute walk from Basil's house.

At about 10 am on Friday, June 14, 2013, Victor was seen walking down the street in Tachie wearing clothes that were wet up to his chest. Vanessa, Joseph, and Ron witnessed this in front of Ron's house. They thought it strange, but not knowing that Basil was missing at the time, didn't investigate further. After learning that the truck that Victor was driving was in an accident near Kuzche, Vanessa considered it odd that Victor would be back in town so soon, on foot. The black truck from the hunting cabin was not driven back to Tachie but was left on Leo Creek Forest Service Road, an hour away by vehicle from where Victor was seen walking. Tachie is about 45 minutes north of Fort St. James, and Kuzche is located about 45 minutes north of Tachie. The area consists of numerous rivers, ponds, lakes, and rolling hills. Most of the land is covered in forest, and the area has one main highway to Fort St. James, numerous logging roads, and a railway that runs through it and through both Tachie and Kuzche; industry in the area consists mainly of mining and logging. Both Tachie and Kuzche are accessible by road as well. The railroad is no longer in use and the local sawmill, owned by Tanizul Timber, has been shut down since before Basil's disappearance. Various animals are known to the area, including cougars, black and grizzly bears, coyotes, and wolves.

Numerous posters, billboards and news articles have gone up in an effort to raise awareness about the disappearance. The RCMP released numerous press releases, including one during the month marking the three-year anniversary of Basil's disappearance.

Considering the area's remoteness and the timing of Basil's vanishing, it is unlikely that she disappeared due to a stranger abduction. However, according to the FBI, stranger abductions involving women mostly are motivated by sexual assault and are also the most likely to involve the use of a firearm.

Similar disappearances

Basil disappeared in an area that is part of what is known as "the Highway of Tears corridor." Mackie's cousin Bonnie Marie Joseph went missing along the same corridor. Joseph was last seen by her cousin Joanne hitchhiking east towards Prince George from Vanderhoof on Saturday, September 8, 2007.