A missing poster shows a photo of Jedidiah Kowchee who was reported missing in Sitka on Dec. 15, 2023.
Sitka police spent Friday afternoon (7-4-25) searching for a Soldotna man who has been missing in Sitka since December of 2023.
Sitka Police Department spokesperson Serena Wild said they resumed the hunt for Jedidiah Kowchee after his father came forward with new information.
“He’d spoken to a lady who thought she’d seen Jedidiah the night he went missing, maybe over behind Blatchley, in an abandoned area, or in an abandoned building over by UAS,” Wild said. “We have the resources to search those areas, so we did launch the search and rescue to go check them out, and they didn’t find anything in either location.”
Fire Chief Craig Warren said a couple of dog teams and about a dozen people searched the area around Blatchley Middle School and the local University of Alaska Southeast campus for about four hours, but found no signs of Kowchee.
Police and search crews have turned up few leads since Kowchee’s disappearance over a year and a half ago. Security footage showed Kowchee leaving Orion Sporting Goods around 4 p.m. on Dec. 13, 2023 – his last known whereabouts.
In an interview with KCAW last year, Kowchee’s father said he was holding out hope that his son would be found safe.
Anyone with information is asked to contact the Sitka Police Department at 907-747-3245 or call the anonymous tip line at 907-747-8980.
