Ranelle Rose Bennett, a 33-year-old mother of two and an enrolled member of the Navajo Nation, was last seen June 15, 2021, at her home in Waterflow, New Mexico. Known as Tiny to her family, she visited her mother that day to discuss her daughter’s upcoming tenth birthday; their final hug was unusually long and Ranelle appeared to be crying. She promised to help with party decorations later that day but never arrived, and texts from her waiting daughter went unanswered.

Her mother, Rose Yazzie, filed a missing persons report on June 21, 2021. The report was not entered into the law enforcement database for several days, a delay the family says cost critical time and led to frustration over communication from authorities.

Ranelle had been dating Kendale KJ Johnson for about a month before she disappeared; Johnson was later arrested in July 2021 on separate charges in the Shiprock area and was interviewed about Ranelle, saying he last saw her a couple of days after her mother did. The Navajo Nation Police Department and the Bureau of Indian Affairs Missing and Murdered Unit are handling the open investigation. If anyone knew Ranelle, her movements in June 2021, or has information about the items found north of Shiprock, please come forward.