Remains of Missing Alaska Teenager Found 2 Years After She Vanished

The remains of an Alaska teenager who went missing around two years ago were found, raising questions about her death.

On Tuesday, Sept. 23, the Alaska State Troopers confirmed that human remains, identified as 18-year-old Anchorage resident Ataja Banks, had been discovered in the area of Moose Meadows Road in the city of Wasilla earlier this month, per a press release.

“In November 2023, the Anchorage Police Department began investigating the disappearance of 18-year-old Anchorage resident Ataja Banks from the Anchorage area,” the Troopers’ release stated.

“The Alaska State Troopers assumed case responsibility after it was determined that she was last known to be alive in the Mat-Su Valley,” the release continued.

The human remains were located on Sept. 4, and have since been “positively identified as Banks,” Troopers said, adding that information learned during the investigation had led officers to believe that the teenager was murdered.

The update comes after the Anchorage Police Department (APD) previously put out a Facebook post asking for the public’s help in locating Banks, who was reported missing to police on Oct. 21, 2023.

Police said at the time that Banks’ family had last heard from her in mid-September of that year, and it wasn’t known where she was staying.

The APD released a photo of Banks, which had been taken in August 2023, noting that she was 5-feet-4 inches tall and 135 pounds, with black hair and brown eyes.

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The Alaska State Troopers confirmed that “the Alaska Bureau of Investigation is continuing its investigation into Ataja’s murder,” per the release.

The post added, “Her next of kin have been notified, and her body was sent to the State Medical Examiner’s Office, which has completed an autopsy.”

The State Medical Examiner’s Office in Alaska, the Alaska Department of Public Safety and the Anchorage Police Department didn’t immediately respond when contacted by PEOPLE for additional information.