Dead trees at Mammoth Hot Springs — Credit: Brocken Inaglory · CC BY-SA 3.0
The Highway of Tears refers to a 719-kilometre (447 mi) corridor of Highway 16 between Prince George and Prince Rupert, British Columbia, associated with crimes against many women since the highway's completion in 1969. The name was coined in 1998 during a vigil in Terrace, B.C., by Florence Naziel, referring to the grief of victims' families. A disproportionate number of the victims are Indigenous women, linking the cases to the broader Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women (MMIW) movement. Proposed factors contributing to the toleration of these crimes and the limited progress in solving them include poverty, drug abuse, domestic violence, disruption of family and cultural ties through the foster care system and residential schools, lack of public transportation leading to reliance on hitchhiking, and the remote, isolated character of the region.
Accounts of the number of victims vary. The RCMP's Project E-Pana lists fewer than 18 cases meeting its criteria, while Indigenous organizations estimate the number of missing and murdered women along the highway to be higher than 40. The first RCMP investigation attempting to link cases along the highway began in December 1998; that early list also included three male victims. A number of people have since been convicted in cases connected to the Highway of Tears, including three men identified as serial killers: Brian Peter Arp, Edward Dennis Isaac, and Cody Legebokoff. Bobby Jack Fowler, an American man implicated in other E-Pana cases outside the Highway of Tears, was never charged in connection with any Highway of Tears victim and died in prison; a former Vancouver police geographic profiler stated his opinion that Fowler was not responsible for crimes along Highway 16 between 1989 and 2006.
Project E-Pana, launched by the RCMP in 2005, examined unsolved murders and disappearances of women and girls along Highway 16 and connecting highways to determine whether a single serial killer or multiple offenders were responsible. Its caseload and funding fluctuated over time, and by 2014 the number of officers assigned had dropped sharply from previous years. In 2014, murder charges were brought against a man for the 1978 death of 12-year-old Monica Jack; he was later found guilty by a jury and sentenced to life in prison in early 2019, marking the first E-Pana file to be resolved through a full court process.
A separate controversy emerged concerning government records: in October 2015, British Columbia's Information and Privacy Commissioner published a report finding that a ministerial assistant had "triple deleted" emails relating to the Highway of Tears in response to a freedom-of-information request, in breach of provincial privacy law. The ministerial assistant resigned and was later convicted of lying to the privacy commissioner, receiving a fine.
Critics, including Indigenous activists, have argued that systemic racism contributed to limited media coverage and slower investigative response for Indigenous victims compared to non-Indigenous victims such as Nicole Hoar, whose 2002 disappearance received comparatively significant media attention. Recommendation reports arising from a 2006 symposium and a 2012 government inquiry called for improved public transportation and other measures; a subsidized bus service began operating along part of the highway in 2017, and expanded cellular coverage was installed along a remaining stretch in December 2024.
Highway 16 corridor between Prince George and Prince Rupert, British Columbia
Case status
ongoing
Case timeline
1969
Highway 16 between Prince George and Prince Rupert is completed.
1970
Disappearances along the corridor later associated with the Highway of Tears are documented as far back as this year.
1974
Colleen MacMillen is killed; the case is later linked by Project E-Pana to Bobby Jack Fowler.
1978
12-year-old Monica Jack is killed; the case later results in a murder charge.
1998
Florence Naziel coins the phrase 'Highway of Tears' during a vigil in Terrace, B.C.; RCMP opens the first investigation attempting to link cases along the highway.
2002-06-21
Nicole Hoar disappears while hitchhiking on Highway 16.
2005
RCMP launches Project E-Pana, initially covering three cases.
2006-03
A two-day Highway of Tears symposium is held in Prince George, leading to a recommendation report.
2009
Police search a rural Prince George property for the remains of Nicole Hoar and other missing women.
2012
B.C. inquiry commissioner Wally Oppal endorses the Highway of Tears Symposium Recommendation Report in his Missing Women Commission of Inquiry recommendations.
2014
Murder charges are brought against a suspect in the 1978 death of Monica Jack; a freedom-of-information request reveals the E-Pana task force has shrunk from 70 to 12 officers since 2010.
2015-10-22
B.C.'s Information and Privacy Commissioner publishes a report on the 'triple deletion' of government emails related to the Highway of Tears.
2015-11
A special prosecutor is appointed within the RCMP investigation into the email deletion.
2016-06
B.C. Transportation Minister Todd Stone announces a new bus service for Highway 16.
2017-06
A subsidized transit service begins operating between Prince George and Burns Lake.
2019-early
A jury finds the accused in the Monica Jack case guilty; he is sentenced to life in prison, marking the first E-Pana file resolved through full court proceedings.
2024-12-30
Rogers installs five 5G cell towers to close a cellular service gap along a 166-kilometre stretch of the highway.
Best coverage
Titles and descriptions are the creators’ own and may not reflect current legal status; see the dossier above for sourced case facts.
VIDEO
Georgia Marie / 27 min
THE HIGHWAY OF TEARS | MIDWEEK MYSTERY
People
Wayne Clary
LAW ENFORCEMENT
RCMP sergeant who stated police may never solve all the cases and that communities would help solve the crimes.
Cody Legebokoff
CONVICTED
Identified as a serial killer convicted in a case related to the Highway of Tears.
George Gretes
CONVICTED
Former ministerial assistant convicted of lying to the B.C. Information and Privacy Commissioner and fined $2,500 in connection with the 'triple deletion' of Highway of Tears-related emails; resigned in October 2015.
Tamara Chipman
VICTIM
Victim referenced in connection with a memorial totem pole raised by her family and comments by her aunt, activist Gladys Radek.
Brian Peter Arp
CONVICTED
Identified as a serial killer convicted in a case related to the Highway of Tears.
Ramona Wilson
VICTIM
16-year-old victim found alongside the highway, subject of the documentary Finding Dawn.
Nicole Hoar
VICTIM
Tree planter who went missing on Highway 16 on 21 June 2002; her disappearance received significant media coverage.
Colleen MacMillen
VICTIM
16-year-old killed in 1974; case linked by Project E-Pana to Bobby Jack Fowler.
Monica Jack
VICTIM
12-year-old victim killed in 1978; her case became the first Project E-Pana file resolved through full court proceedings.
Amber Tuccaro
VICTIM
Went missing in 2010 at age 20; featured in a television documentary about missing women.
Edward Dennis Isaac
CONVICTED
Identified as a serial killer convicted in a case related to the Highway of Tears.
Pamela Darlington
VICTIM
Victim killed in the 1970s; considered by E-Pana in connection with suspect Bobby Jack Fowler.
Gale Weys
VICTIM
Victim killed in the 1970s; considered by E-Pana in connection with suspect Bobby Jack Fowler.
Garry Taylor Handlen
CONVICTED
Charged in 2014 and later found guilty by jury and sentenced to life in prison in early 2019 for the 1978 killing of 12-year-old Monica Jack.
Roles reflect public records and court outcomes at the time of writing — supporting citations are on file under Sources.
A 719-kilometre stretch of Highway 16 between Prince George and Prince Rupert, British Columbia, has been linked to the disappearances, murders, and unexplained deaths of numerous women and girls since at least 1970, with Indigenous women disproportionately represented among the victims.
Where did the crime happen?
Highway 16 corridor between Prince George and Prince Rupert, British Columbia.
Who was convicted?
Cody Legebokoff (Identified as a serial killer convicted in a case related to the Highway of Tears.), George Gretes (Former ministerial assistant convicted of lying to the B.C. Information and Privacy Commissioner and fined $2,500 in connection with the 'triple deletion' of Highway of Tears-related emails; resigned in October 2015.), Brian Peter Arp (Identified as a serial killer convicted in a case related to the Highway of Tears.), Edward Dennis Isaac (Identified as a serial killer convicted in a case related to the Highway of Tears.), and Garry Taylor Handlen (Charged in 2014 and later found guilty by jury and sentenced to life in prison in early 2019 for the 1978 killing of 12-year-old Monica Jack.).
