She Just Wanted to Go Home: The Tragic Death of Emily Pike

[00:00:00] The case featured in this episode has been researched using police records, court documents, witness statements, and the news. Listener discretion is advised. All parties mentioned are innocent until proven guilty, and all opinions are my own.

[00:00:33] Hey everyone, my name is Nikki Young and this is Serial Napper, the true crime podcast for naps. I'm back with another true crime story to lull you to sleep, or perhaps to give you nightmares. She was just 14, a soft-spoken girl who loved her cat, sketched her dreams in notebooks, took guitar lessons, and had just begun to explore who she was, experimenting with makeup, thinking about high school, and maybe even college.

[00:01:03] Her name was Emily Pike. She was a daughter, a sister, a beloved member of the San Carlos Apache tribe. And on a quiet night in January of 2025, she disappeared. Emily had been placed in a group home in Mesa, Arizona, a place that was supposed to keep her safe after surviving unthinkable trauma. But instead of healing, Emily found isolation. She cried to go home. She ran.

[00:01:33] She broke. She broke. And then she vanished. Two weeks later, her body was found, stuffed in trash bags, dumped off the side of US Highway 60. Like she was nothing. Like her life never mattered. But it did, and it still does.

[00:01:50] What happened to Emily Pike is more than a tragedy. It's a warning. A flashing red light on a system riddled with neglect. A system where vulnerable Indigenous youth too often vanish into silence. Three potential suspects. Three potential suspects. No arrests. And a family, a tribe, and a nation demanding to know who failed Emily and who killed her.

[00:02:15] This episode isn't just about a murder. It's about how the system designed to protect our most vulnerable didn't just let Emily fall through the cracks. It threw her to the wolves. So, dim the lights, put your phone down, and listen as I dive into the life and loss of Emily Pike and the investigation that could change everything or maybe nothing at all. So let's jump right in.

[00:02:40] Before the headlines, before the search parties, before the crime scene tape stretched across a dusty Arizona highway, there was a girl. Not a case file, not a number. A girl named Emily Pike. Her family has described her as sweet, soft-spoken, the kind of kid who'd quietly slip you a drawing she'd just spent hours on, just to see you smile.

[00:03:05] She loved art and animals, especially her cat Millie. It was no secret that Emily was obsessed with Hello Kitty and anything and everything that came in the color pink. She was a girly girl. She had just started to find her rhythm in life, taking guitar lessons, experimenting with makeup, daydreaming about high school and college, about what she might become.

[00:03:31] Because the possibilities were endless, and things were never supposed to end like this. Emily's story didn't begin in a group home. It began in a warm, crowded house on the San Carlos Apache Reservation, surrounded by her mother, her brother, her aunts and uncles, her cousins and grandparents. When she was born, her name was chosen to honor both sides of the family.

[00:03:55] And when she came home from the hospital, her house was bursting at the seams with relatives eager to meet her, hold her, love her. She was the kind of child people remembered as joyful, curious and full of life. The kind who always had a cousin's hand in hers or a sibling beside her. Her family visited often from Colorado and Utah, taking her on trips to malls, water parks, zoos, and the movies.

[00:04:24] She loved going to those places, not only because they were fun, but because she was with people who made her feel safe. So what happened to Emily? How did a girl so loved, so full of light, become a victim of such evil? To answer that, we need to go back to a moment that changed everything. In 2023, Emily reported that she had been sexually assaulted, a trauma that no child should ever have to endure.

[00:04:54] A family member was arrested in connection with the abuse. However, the case was ultimately dropped without any charges being laid. This decision would draw significant criticism of the tribal justice system, and it would lead to Emily being victimized even further.

[00:05:11] In the aftermath, at just 11 or 12 years old, she was removed from her mother's custody and placed in a group home operated by Sacred Journey Inc. in Mesa, Arizona, for her safety, apparently. But instead of healing, things only got worse. The shelter she was sent to wasn't a refuge. It was over 100 miles away from her family, from the people who knew her best, who loved her unconditionally.

[00:05:40] And in the silence of that distance, Emily's pain only deepened. The group home was supposed to protect her, to give her a safe space to heal. Instead, it became a place where her mental health challenges only grew more intense. Emily struggled with depression that threatened to consume her. She felt trapped in a world that didn't understand her, away from the comfort of her mother's voice, her brother's laughter, the warmth of home.

[00:06:10] In the isolation of that facility, Emily's thoughts only turned darker. She attempted suicide more than once. Each time, a cry for help, a desperate plea for someone to see her pain. Yet the system, which was meant to save her, seemed indifferent to her suffering. Emily ran away from the group home over and over again. She tried to escape the hurt, the hopelessness that followed her in those walls.

[00:06:38] She wanted to be with her family again, to feel loved and to feel safe. She begged not to return to the group home, expressing how deeply unsettled she was, how scared she was feeling. Mostly, though, Emily just wanted to be home, back in the place where she could be herself again, where her mother's arms could wrap around her, and she could breathe easy, surrounded by the people who knew her best. The truth is, Emily's disappearance didn't happen overnight.

[00:07:06] It wasn't just one desperate run for freedom. It was a cry for help that went unheard time and time again. There are three missing persons reports for Emily Pike. Three times in 2023, when she was just 13, that she ran away from the same group home, desperate to escape the place that only seemed to make her pain worse. The first time was on September 11, 2023.

[00:07:33] Emily and a 15-year-old girl both disappeared from the home, which housed 10 kids at the time. The two girls likely slipped out through the bedroom window and the side gate in the early hours of the morning. It was 6.12 a.m. when the report was made. At that time, Emily had just been hospitalized the week before for self-harm, a glaring sign of the emotional turmoil she was enduring. When officers found the girls later at Kleinman Park,

[00:08:02] they told them that they didn't want to go back to the group home. Their reason? The staff made them clean, something that seemed trivial. But to Emily, it was the last straw of a much bigger issue. Despite their clear distress, the girls were returned to the group home without incident. Their concerns were ignored. And I don't really blame the police officers at that point. They only knew that the girls didn't want to clean. That's basically typical of every teenager.

[00:08:32] The second time Emily ran away was just nine days later on September 20, 2023. Staff at the group home reported Emily missing once again. When she was found this time, she told the officers that she didn't want to go back because of the constant arguments between the staff and the other juveniles. She felt really uncomfortable and unsafe. This time, Emily was taken to Mind 24-7, which is a mental health clinic,

[00:09:00] where the group home had requested that she be evaluated before returning. This wasn't the first time Emily was sent for evaluation. It was all part of the cycle, punished for trying to escape, then shuffled off to a clinic or facility, as if the problem could be fixed with a diagnosis. Then came October 31, 2023, Halloween. Around 6.36 p.m., Emily ran away again.

[00:09:26] This time, the group home manager reported that this was the fourth time she had gone AWOL. Yet there were conflicting reports about how many times Emily had actually left the home. Some staff claimed that it was even more. Some staff members were unsure. When Emily returned that night, she told other residents that she was laced. It's unclear exactly what she meant, but typically, if someone is talking about being laced,

[00:09:53] it means that they've taken a drug that has been altered with another possibly stronger psychoactive drug. However, the staff, they dismissed her comments, saying that there was no need for medical attention. They simply said that they would monitor her behavior. These three reports give us a glimpse into Emily's troubled life at the group home. A life that she never wanted. A life that pushed her further away from the safety and love of her family.

[00:10:21] But more importantly, they show us a pattern. A pattern of neglect. Of missed opportunities to intervene. And it raises an even darker question. How many chances did Emily have to escape? How many times did the system fail her before she disappeared for good? On January 27, 2025, Emily's final attempt to escape would be the one that led her to her tragic fate.

[00:10:49] This time, no one would find her at a park or return her to the group home. This time, Emily would vanish forever. Emily Pike was last seen on January 27, 2025, leaving the group home in Mesa, Arizona, around 7.45 p.m. Because it wasn't the first time she had run away, there wasn't really any sense of urgency. No Amber Alert.

[00:11:14] No widespread search for a missing child, as authorities determined that there was no evidence of an abduction. I've talked about this in the past with some of the other cases I've covered, but In order for an Amber Alert to be issued, there needs to be evidence that the child has been abducted, and it's believed that the child's life is in imminent danger. Emily Pike was viewed as a runaway because there was a history and a pattern of her running away.

[00:11:40] The group home manager reported Emily missing that very night, near Mesa Drive and McPhillips Road. She told Mesa Police that Emily had snuck out of her bedroom window like she had done several times before. The manager went on to explain to the attending officer that this wasn't the first time Emily had run away, the last time Emily was found near Fitch Park.

[00:12:03] So, in the days following her disappearance, the police and the group home staff checked places Emily had visited before, including Fitch Park and the Rock Teen Center. But there were no signs of her. No one had seen or heard from Emily. Emily's mom, Steph Dosella, she has since shared how upset she was about the lack of communication after her daughter went missing. She said no one even told her right away.

[00:12:31] She didn't find out Emily had left the group home until a whole week later, when the case manager finally reached out to her. By then, she felt completely shut out and powerless, like she wasn't even a part of the search for her own child. And this sounds like such a huge oversight when you're looking for a missing teen. You'd think that perhaps the very first place you'd want to look is with their family at their home. But this didn't happen.

[00:13:00] Time passed and hope began to dwindle. But on February 19, 2025, nearly a month after she disappeared, there was a break in the case. A MESA police officer spoke to an agent with the Bureau of Indian Affairs, who had been investigating a set of human remains discovered just off Highway 60 near Milepost 277, about 100 miles away from where Emily was last seen.

[00:13:28] The discovery of the remains was chilling, but the connection to Emily, it was still unclear. The area where the remains were found was near the Gila County Indian Reservation, an isolated stretch of road. The question now was, could this be where Emily had ended up? And how would a young girl with no means of transportation or any money get so far from the place that she was last seen? Could this really be her?

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[00:16:11] The confirmation came. The remains were positively identified as belonging to Emily Pike. The news sent shockwaves through her family and the community. The girl who had run away to escape a life that she didn't want. The girl who should have been going home to the people who loved her, had instead been abandoned in the most horrific way. It was a death, not just of a young girl, but of hope.

[00:16:39] And now, what was once a missing persons case, had become a homicide investigation. A search for answers that no one wanted to face, but everyone needed. The way her body had been found was horrific, brutal. Her dismembered remains were discovered in trash bags. Her head and torso were found in one bag and her legs in another. As of recording, her hands and her arms, they still remain missing.

[00:17:08] Someone had done this to her in an attempt to get rid of the evidence. Perhaps she had fiercely fought back and her hands would contain evidence that could identify her killer. An autopsy revealed that she had suffered face and head trauma, likely her cause of death, although difficult to determine for certain. As the investigation into Emily Pike's death continued, the involvement of multiple agencies marked a turning point in the search for justice.

[00:17:38] The FBI and tribal police began assisting in the case, pouring resources into the investigation, hoping to uncover the truth behind her tragic end. Three potential suspects have been identified, but as of yet, no arrests have been made. The authorities remain tight-lipped about their identities, fueling rumors and speculation within the community. Who are these suspects? What role did they play in Emily's death, if any?

[00:18:06] And why hasn't anyone been charged yet? Without any concrete answers, we're really only left with theories. One theory is that Emily's disappearance may have been the result of her desperate attempts to escape the group home, where she had been placed for her quote-unquote own safety. It's clear she wasn't comfortable there. She ran away multiple times, and her emotional distress, it was well documented. Could she have tried to leave for good,

[00:18:36] only to find herself in a far more dangerous situation than she ever anticipated? Perhaps Emily's attempt to run away on January 27th was another cry for help. Was she seeking refuge with someone that she trusted? Or did she wander off in an attempt to escape her situation, only to encounter a predator along the way? Authorities haven't ruled out the possibility that Emily was targeted by someone with harmful intent,

[00:19:05] someone who had been watching her, or who took advantage of her vulnerability. Another theory focuses on the possibility of foul play of someone within the group home or connected to it. At the time of her disappearance in January 2025, Emily Pike was residing at a group home operated by Sacred Journey, Inc. This was supposed to be a place of safety for her, a facility that would provide the care and protection that she needed

[00:19:32] after the tragic events she had already endured. But Sacred Journey, Inc. has a history that raises some serious questions. In the past three years, over 30 missing persons reports have been filed from this very facility, more than any one group home should ever have to face. This alarming trend points to systemic issues within the facility itself, issues that may have contributed to Emily's tragic fate.

[00:20:00] Following Emily's death, the Arizona Department of Child Safety launched a licensing inquiry into Sacred Journey, Inc. They are now under intense scrutiny, understandably so given the circumstances of Emily's death and the troubling history of incidences at the facility. But the issue extends beyond just one facility. The San Carlos Apache tribe, who had placed Emily at Sacred Journey, Inc.,

[00:20:27] called for a broader investigation into all state-licensed group homes serving Indigenous youth. Emily's story has highlighted a disturbing pattern of neglect and failure in protecting some of the most vulnerable children in the system, Indigenous youth, who too often fall through the cracks of an already flawed system. Given the disturbing history of over 30 missing persons reports at Sacred Journey, Inc., in the last three years,

[00:20:55] could there be a link between Emily's case and others that have come before? Was she taken by someone who knew the system and exploited it? Could there be a deeper, more troubling pattern of abuse or neglect that led to her death? Some believe that Emily may have been manipulated or coerced into a dangerous situation, a theory that would point to someone with more sinister intentions. Was Emily's attempt to run away a step in a broader scheme?

[00:21:24] Or was she simply another victim of a broken system? Emily Pike's former roommate at the group home, whom I'll refer to as Chelsea in order to protect her identity, has shared with the media some insights into Emily's life at the facility and the events leading up to her disappearance. Chelsea, who lived at the same group home for four years and who was kept in touch with many of the girls still at the home, she provided important context about Emily's time there.

[00:21:53] According to Chelsea, Emily had lived at the group home on two separate occasions. Chelsea said that the atmosphere at the home was difficult, but she tried to guide Emily in the right direction. Chelsea revealed that Emily had left the group home in late January 2025 with the intent to visit a boy that she met while taking guitar lessons. At the time Emily disappeared, a church group was conducting activities at the facility,

[00:22:22] which Chelsea believes may have distracted the staff, allowing Emily to slip away unnoticed. Chelsea would say, What it looked like was that the church was there, and that served as a distraction of when Emily left. She left because she wanted to go out and see the boy she liked, and she wanted to talk to him. She either used the back door or used the window and left as everyone was distracted.

[00:22:48] However, based on where Emily's body would ultimately be found, so far away from the group home, Chelsea would say that she believes Emily simply wanted to be with her family and return to the safety of her reservation. Maybe she tried to hitchhike her way home and was picked up by the wrong person. But there are also those who fear the possibility that Emily may have actually known her killer.

[00:23:14] If the suspects identified in the investigation are, in fact, involved, it raises questions about their relationship to Emily. Were they someone she trusted? Someone from her past? Someone who had been watching her during her time at the group home? There is also the possibility that Emily's death may have been part of a larger, more complex web of abuse or trafficking that we have yet to fully understand.

[00:23:41] As the investigation unfolds, law enforcement is pursuing all possible leads. No theory is being dismissed. For now, the theories are just that. Speculations. Questions. Pieces of a puzzle that haven't yet been solved. The San Carlos Apache tribe, in a powerful show of support, have announced a $75,000 reward for information leading to an arrest.

[00:24:07] Anyone who has any information is encouraged to step forward and help bring justice to Emily Pike. Since Emily's death, more and more people are speaking out and demanding change. Her heartbreaking story has become a powerful spark for a bigger movement, one that's pushing to fix the deep-rooted problems that let something like this happen in the first place. One response to Emily's case came from Arizona lawmakers,

[00:24:34] who are now pushing forward with House Bill 2281. This bill is all about creating a new alert system specifically for missing Indigenous people, because the current systems just aren't cutting it. Right now, tools like the Amber Alert don't always work well for Indigenous communities, especially for those on reservations or in remote areas where communication and resources can be limited.

[00:25:01] Advocates have been saying for years that when Indigenous people, especially kids, go missing, their cases often don't get the same level of urgency or visibility. Emily's story is a heartbreaking example of exactly that. House Bill 2281 is aiming to change the way that things are handled. If it passes, it would set up a dedicated alert system to make sure missing Indigenous people get the fast, focused response that they deserve.

[00:25:30] It's a step toward recognizing that the current system has let too many people down, and that Indigenous lives should be treated with the same care and urgency as anyone else's. The bill still has yet to make its way through the process, but even getting this far is meaningful. It's more than legislation. It's a statement. It's saying that no one should be forgotten, and that we're finally ready to stop letting these stories fade into the background.

[00:26:00] It's for Emily, and it's for every Indigenous person who's ever gone missing without the attention or justice that they deserve. There are several other documented cases where Indigenous youth have faced neglect or mistreatment in state-licensed homes. Between 2015 and 2021, there were a ton of vulnerable kids from Nunavut who were sent to group homes in Ontario, Canada, and things went really wrong.

[00:26:27] According to internal reports from both Highland Shores Children's Aid Society and Nunavut's Department of Family Services, there were serious concerns about how these kids were being treated. At Bayfield Treatment Centers in particular, staff were accused of using improper restraints on the kids, making up details in incident reports, and even punishing them for speaking their Indigenous languages. One report described the place as chaotic,

[00:26:55] like things would spiral into full-on brawls between staff and the youth, with some situations so bad they were basically riots. A 2024 report out of Nebraska shed light on some pretty troubling stats about Native youth in the state. Even though they make up just 1% of the general youth population, they're way overrepresented in the system. They account for 2.8% of kids removed from their homes,

[00:27:23] 4.3% of youth on probation who end up placed out of home, and a shocking 16.8% of those in youth rehab and treatment centers. These numbers really highlight how deep the systemic problems run when it comes to how Indigenous kids are treated in Nebraska's child welfare and juvenile justice systems. As the investigation into Emily Pike's murder continues to unfold, her story continues to inspire change,

[00:27:53] a change that will hopefully protect future generations of Indigenous youth. Tragedy has a way of pushing change into motion, and maybe, just maybe, Emily's story will be the spark that leads to something better. I'll be following this case closely. Hopefully, Emily's family will have answers soon, and the evil person who did this to a child, a 14-year-old child, will be brought to justice. That's it for me tonight.

[00:28:21] If you want to reach out, you can find me on Facebook at Serial Napper. You can find my audio on Apple or Spotify, or wherever you listen to podcasts. I post all of my episodes in video format over on YouTube, so go check it out. And if you're watching on YouTube, I would love if you can give me a thumbs up and subscribe. Every little bit helps. I'm also on Patreon. If you'd like to get your Serial Napper episodes early and ad-free,

[00:28:46] hop on over and check out all the details at patreon.com slash serialnapper. Until next time, sweet dreams, stay kind, especially in the comments. Bye.