Case file
Key facts
- Name: Melissa Beson
- Age at disappearance: 37
- Missing since: March 17, 2025
- Location: Lac du Flambeau, Wisconsin — last seen walking on Indian Village Road near Wayman Lane, toward Highway 47
- Description: Native American female, 5 feet 7 inches tall, medium build of about 170 pounds, brown hair and brown eyes. She has numerous tattoos, including on her neck, arms and legs. Last seen wearing red sweatpants, a black sleeveless shirt and a gray sweatshirt.
- NamUs case: MP143404 — official poster maintained by the Wisconsin Department of Justice Clearinghouse for Missing & Exploited Children & Adults
- Status: Still missing — her Wisconsin DOJ/NamUs poster remains active in 2026, and the Lakeland Times reported renewed multi-agency searches for her on June 3–4, 2026
- Investigating agency: Lac du Flambeau Tribal Police Department, (715) 588-7717; Vilas County Sheriff’s Office, (715) 479-4441
Last seen walking toward Highway 47
Melissa Beson, 37, was last seen in the late afternoon of Monday, March 17, 2025, walking on Indian Village Road near Wayman Lane in Lac du Flambeau, Wisconsin, heading toward Highway 47. She wore red sweatpants, a black sleeveless shirt and a gray sweatshirt. The Lac du Flambeau Tribal Police Department’s later update places the last-seen area near Chequamegon Forest Trail as well. No vehicle was involved in the sighting — she was on foot, in her own community, in daylight.
Six days passed before worried family members reported her missing on Sunday, March 23, 2025. From that day, the tribal police say, finding her has been the department’s number one priority. On April 3, 2025, the Wisconsin Department of Justice’s Crime Alert Network issued an endangered person alert for her, with two photographs.
1,300 acres, drones, dogs — and a search that nearly cost a life
The search for Beson is one of the most intensive ever mounted on the reservation. Tribal officers searched on foot in severe weather, coming in on their days off. Newbold Search and Rescue brought specially trained canines, which picked up her scent in the area of her last known sighting. The department flew its two drones over the open water of the Bear River and sent an underwater drone beneath the ice shelves. Officers combed through countless hours of surveillance footage, interviewed dozens of people, and worked with agencies across Wisconsin — including the Wausau Police Department — to follow up leads and even search residences in other jurisdictions.
By April 15, 2025, Wisconsin Public Radio reported more than 824 acres had been searched, in an interview with Police Chief TJ Bill about the challenges of the terrain. By April 24, the figure had passed 1,300 acres of grid searches on foot, with high-tech drones and airplanes. That same day showed why police have not asked untrained volunteers to join: the tribe’s Emergency Management Director nearly lost her life searching a floating bog, saved only by her training and experience. “Many of the search areas are characterized by extremely treacherous terrain,” the department said.
People reported seeing Beson in other places. Officers traveled to those jurisdictions and followed up every one — and every report turned out to be a case of mistaken identity or, in the department’s words, a cruel hoax. The search has never formally ended: the Lakeland Times reported law enforcement from several agencies out again on June 3 and 4, 2026, in another round of the search for her. She is one of four people reported missing from the Lac du Flambeau reservation in the last four years.
“Melissa, please know that you are not in trouble”
In April 2025, tribal police took the unusual step of speaking directly to Beson through their public updates, in case she was alive, nearby, and afraid to come home: “Melissa, please know that you are not in trouble. We are not going to arrest you or take you to jail. All anyone wants is for you to come home. Your family is frantic, and the entire community is worried about you… If you need transportation, it will be provided. If you need money to assist you in coming home, that, too, will be provided. Just please reach out, and let your community know that you are safe.”
The Lac du Flambeau Tribe offers a reward of up to $25,000 for information leading to her return and/or the arrest and prosecution of anyone involved in her disappearance.
What is not known
Whether Beson ever reached Highway 47, whether she got into a vehicle, and where she went after she walked out of sight on Indian Village Road. Nineteen months of searching — on foot, by air, by dog and by drone, across more than 1,300 acres — has produced no trace of her. Her Wisconsin DOJ missing-person poster (NamUs MP143404) is still active, and no report of her being found has ever been made.
Have information?
Contact the Lac du Flambeau Tribal Police Department at (715) 588-7717 or the Vilas County Sheriff’s Office at (715) 479-4441. Tips can also go to the Wisconsin Clearinghouse at 1-800-843-4673 (1-800-THE-HOPE). In an emergency, dial 911.
Timeline
- March 17, 2025, late afternoon — Beson is last seen walking on Indian Village Road near Wayman Lane in Lac du Flambeau, toward Highway 47, wearing red sweatpants, a black sleeveless shirt and a gray sweatshirt.
- March 23, 2025 — Concerned family members report her missing to the Lac du Flambeau Tribal Police Department; intensive searches begin immediately.
- April 1, 2025 — LDFPD update: ground searches in severe weather, Newbold Search and Rescue canines pick up her scent near the last sighting, drone and underwater-drone searches of the Bear River.
- April 3, 2025 — Wisconsin DOJ Crime Alert Network issues an endangered person alert with two photos of Beson.
- April 15, 2025 — Wisconsin Public Radio reports more than 824 acres searched; Police Chief TJ Bill describes the difficulty of the search.
- April 24, 2025 — LDFPD update: over 1,300 acres searched; an Emergency Management Director nearly dies in a floating bog; all reported sightings elsewhere have proven to be mistaken identity or hoaxes; police publish their direct message to Melissa.
- May 19, 2025 — WUPM reports the search continues and the Tribe’s reward of up to $25,000.
- June 3–4, 2026 — Renewed multi-agency search for Beson, reported by the Lakeland Times.
- Today — Still missing. Her Wisconsin DOJ/NamUs poster (MP143404) remains active and no report of her being found exists.
FAQ
Is Melissa Beson still missing?
Yes. As of October 2026, Melissa Beson remains missing. Her official Wisconsin Department of Justice missing-person poster (NamUs MP143404) is still active, and the Lakeland Times reported renewed searches for her as recently as June 3–4, 2026.
When was Melissa Beson last seen?
In the late afternoon of March 17, 2025. She was reported missing by her family six days later, on March 23, 2025.
Where was Melissa Beson last seen?
Walking on Indian Village Road near Wayman Lane in Lac du Flambeau, Wisconsin, heading toward Highway 47. She was wearing red sweatpants, a black sleeveless shirt and a gray sweatshirt.
What happened to Melissa Beson?
It is not known. Despite searches of more than 1,300 acres with dogs, drones and aircraft, no trace of her has been found, and every reported sighting elsewhere was investigated and ruled out. Police have also publicly told her she is not in trouble, in case she is alive and afraid to return.
What does Melissa Beson look like?
She is a 5’7″ Native American woman with a medium build of about 170 pounds, brown hair and brown eyes, with numerous tattoos on her neck, arms and legs — the Wisconsin DOJ poster pictures her calf and neck tattoos.
What is the reward in Melissa Beson’s case?
The Lac du Flambeau Tribe offers up to $25,000 for information leading to her return and/or the arrest and prosecution of anyone involved in her disappearance.
Who is investigating?
The Lac du Flambeau Tribal Police Department, (715) 588-7717, with the Vilas County Sheriff’s Office, (715) 479-4441. Her NamUs case number is MP143404.
How can I help?
Share her Wisconsin DOJ poster, especially in Vilas County and northern Wisconsin, and report anything you remember from Indian Village Road or Highway 47 on March 17, 2025 — however small — to tribal police.
Sources
- Official / law enforcement: Wisconsin Department of Justice, Clearinghouse for Missing & Exploited Children & Adults — official missing-person poster for Melissa Beson, NamUs MP143404 (date missing March 17, 2025; age 37; 5’7″, brown hair and eyes; last seen on Indian Village Road toward Highway 47 in red sweatpants, black sleeveless shirt, gray sweatshirt; Lac du Flambeau Tribal Police Department (715) 588-7717). Poster remains live in its 2026 edition, rechecked October 20, 2026.
- News: Wisconsin Public Radio, “Lac du Flambeau woman is latest in ‘public health crisis’ of missing Indigenous women in Wisconsin” (April 15, 2025 — Police Chief TJ Bill interview; ground, air and water searches over 824 acres at that date).
- News: The Lakeland Times, “LdF search for Beson continues” (June 2026 — renewed June 3–4, 2026 multi-agency searches; the April 3, 2025 endangered person alert).
- News: MyNorthernWisconsin — LDFPD statements of April 1 and April 24, 2025 (reported missing March 23; scent dogs; over 1,300 acres searched; the floating-bog incident; the department’s message to Melissa; Vilas County Sheriff’s Office (715) 479-4441; photo submitted by the Vilas County Sheriff’s Office).
- News: WUPM 106.9 (May 19, 2025 — search continues; the Tribe’s reward of up to $25,000).
Found an error? Tell us via the About page and we will fix it promptly and note the change here. Last verified October 20, 2026.