By Gina Hill | Alaska Headline Living | February 2026
Safe and Accounted For
There is quiet relief in this update.
A 14-year-old Anchorage girl who had been missing since early January has been located safe, according to the Anchorage Police Department.
Police first issued an “APD Locate” alert for Ariana Smart on January 8, 2026, asking the public for help in finding her. In a new statement, APD confirmed the alert has been canceled and Ariana is no longer considered a missing person. A case can only be cleared after an officer makes in-person contact to verify the individual’s safety. That confirmation has now taken place.
APD thanked community members who shared the original alert and helped bring the case to a close.
A Broader Context
Alaska consistently ranks among the highest in the nation for missing persons per capita. The Alaska Department of Public Safety maintains the state’s Missing Persons Clearinghouse, which tracks active and historical cases. The database includes well over a thousand open cases statewide, some dating back decades.
Each case is different. Many involve juveniles who are later located. Others remain unsolved for years.
Tonight’s Spotlight
For those thinking about missing and murdered people’s stories more broadly, tonight on Investigation Discovery marks the premiere of Lost Women of Alaska, a three-hour documentary series exploring real cases of Alaska Native women who were killed and their investigations. The show debuts at 8 p.m. Eastern / 5 p.m. Pacific / 4 p.m. Alaska on ID and streaming on @HBOMax.
For Ariana and her family, this story ends in relief. In Alaska, where many families continue searching for answers, that relief is its own kind of quiet ending. 🙏
