FBI Dive Team Searches Johnley Pond for Missing Wesley Jones

MISSION – A FBI dive team’s search of Johnley Pond for missing Confederated Tribes of the Umatilla Indian Reservation (CTUIR) member Wesley Dixon Jones on Dec. 3 yielded no results, said the Umatilla Tribal Police Department (UTPD).

UTPD Det. William Morris said the five-member team checked the pond with boats using specialized equipment, including an underwater drone.

“They had other equipment that they were using, too,” he said. “But using their specialized equipment they did not detect anything that resembled human remains.”

Morris said the FBI checked the pond because of an anomaly detected during a search led by the MMIW Search & Hope Alliance the weekend of Oct. 31 to Nov. 2. In that search, sonar equipment was used for deeper pools of water along the Umatilla River and Johnley Pond.

“Anomaly does not necessarily mean human remains or remains of any kind. It’s something that could be remains,” Morris said. “They (FBI) were following up on information that was yielded during the MMIW search.”

He said the FBI search took approximately half a day and no other anomalies were detected. Morris said the investigation is ongoing, but no additional searches have been scheduled and there are no plans to expand the search perimeter.

Located along Johnley Road north of the Umatilla River near Cayuse, the 30-foot-deep pond is a former rock quarry that during the years became an illegal dump, shooting range and party spot.

Jones, 71, was last seen at approximately 3:15 p.m. on Oct. 5 along east Short Mile Road on the Umatilla Indian Reservation in a gray 2003 Ford Escape with Oregon license plate SM15454. When the vehicle returned west on the same road Jones was no longer visible in it. The driver’s identity hasn’t been disclosed because of the investigation.

He is described as a 5-feet, 8-inch-tall Native American weighing approximately 140 pounds with long black hair and brown eyes. Jones was last seen wearing a black and red Tiger Scott jacket, black shirt, black sweatpants and boots.

Since Oct. 6, the UTPD has conducted searches with the Umatilla County Sheriff’s Office Search & Rescue, aerial drone searches over parts of the Umatilla River and searches on foot. Other areas included in the investigation are between Cayuse and Bingham roads as well as Short Mile Road to Cayuse Road, including River Road.

From Oct. 31 to Nov. 2, the MMIW Search & Hope Alliance used sonar at deeper spots in the Umatilla River. That search also included an area east of Sampson Lane and Short Mile Road along the railroad right-of-way, as well as upriver around the Cayuse community.

On Nov. 18, the UTPD, with the help of CTUIR’s Geographic Information Systems (GIS), conducted an aerial drone search in three previously unsearched locations. Citing the investigation, Morris did not specify the locations other than they were farther away from the Umatilla River.

Anyone with information regarding the case can call the UTPD at 541-278-0550.

The Confederated Tribes of the Umatilla Indian Reservation is comprised of the Cayuse, Walla Walla and Umatilla Tribes, and formed under the Treaty of 1855 at the Walla Walla Valley, 12 Stat. 945. In 1949, the Tribes adopted a constitutional form of government to protect, preserve and enhance the reserved treaty rights guaranteed under federal law.