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Search for Missing person conducted-subject located

BROOK LAKE TOWNSHIP-PENNINGTON, MN: On Friday, September 14, 2018, at approximately 5:00 AM, the Beltrami County Sheriff’s Office received a report of a missing person, identified as 31 year old Derrick G. Harper Jr. of Brook Lake Township. Brook Lake Township is located approximately 18 miles east of Bemidji, MN on the Leech Lake Reservation.

Harper had been reported missing by relatives who had not seen him since the overnight hours of September 11, 2018 near his home. Family members stated that Harper may have been under the influence of unknown substances when he was last seen.

After daylight hours, Beltrami County Deputies and Leech Lake Tribal Police Officers began to search and canvas the heavily wooded neighborhood of Harper’s. This also included a search of the Mississippi River near the Knutson Dam area of Cass Lake by the Beltrami County Boat and Water Division and Conservation Officers of the MN Department of Natural Resources. They were later assisted by fixed wing air support from the MN State Patrol and deployment of a Sheriff’s Office drone to assist in searching the larger sloughs of the Mississippi River.

At approximately 2:30 PM, a larger scale search of the wooded terrain began with approximately 40 Officers representing the Beltrami County Jail, Courts Division and Communications Division, Leech Lake Department of Natural Resources Conservation Officers and Division of Emergency Management, Minnesota State Patrol and agents from the Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension.

At approximately 4:30 PM, an item of clothing had been found by searchers and was positively identified by family members as belonging to Harper. With the help of the family members a smaller contingent of searchers were able to quickly focus their search in an adjacent area to where the clothing was found. Shortly thereafter family and searchers were able to locate Harper injured and extremely dehydrated. Harper was extricated from the woods and transported by Cass Lake Ambulance to Sanford Bemidji Emergency Department.

His current condition is unknown.

The Beltrami County Sheriff’s Office and Leech Lake Tribal Police Department would like to say thank you to our Law Enforcement partner’s and to the family and friends of Derrick Harper’s for quick response and help.

Ernie Beitel, Chief Deputy Sheriff

Beltrami County Sheriff’s Office

 

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