AZ AZ - Aaron Leland Rivers Sr., 26, & Fred Walking Badger, 42, Wet Camp Village, May 21, 1994

[victoriarobinson642]

Aaron was added to NAMUS today. Fred is not in any database that I'm aware of but they went missing together.
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The National Missing and Unidentified Persons System (NamUs)

By bringing people, information, forensic science and technology together, NamUs helps resolve cases.

www.namus.gov

Missing: another tribal environmentalist

Native American environmental activist Fred Walking Badger is missing and violence is suspected.

www.hcn.org

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Fred Walking Badger, who had rallied opposition to pesticide use on the Gila River Reservation, set out to run a brief errand May 21 near Sacaton, Ariz., and never came back. The car he was last seen in was found burned in the desert on June 10.

"He left without saying good-bye or leaving a note," says Walking Badger's wife, Marilynn. "I know it's foul play or something (bad) happened."

Also missing is Aaron Leland Rivers, a 26-year-old Pima who accompanied Fred Walking Badger on the errand. Marilynn Walking Badger says the men were friends and if either were targeted with violence, it was not Rivers. "I feel he (Rivers) was in the wrong place at the wrong time," she says.
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Name - Fred Walking Badger
Biological Sex - Male
Missing Age - 42
Height - 5"5 (I think that's what it says)
Weight - 247 lbs
Race / Ethnicity - American Indian / Alaska Native
Associated Tribe(s) - Walking Badger is of Pima and Zuni heritage
Hair Color - Black
Eye Color - Brown
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Name - Aaron Leland Rivers Sr.
Chosen Name/Nickname/Alias - Bo/Malo
Biological Sex - Male
Height - 5' 10" (70 Inches)
Weight - 230 lbs
Race / Ethnicity - American Indian / Alaska Native - Enrolled with Gila River Indian Community of the Gila River Indian Reservation
Hair Color - Black
Head Hair Description - Shoulder length black hair
Facial Hair Description - Possible mustache or goatee, stubble
Eye Color - Brown
Piercing - Wore an earring
Tattoo - Tear drop tattoo on face under left eye
Tattoo - Native women in hair on left forearm
Tattoo - Spider on right hand
Tattoo - Barbwire around right wrist
Tattoo - Old English spiders (several) on back of right arm
Tattoo - Large tattoo on right forearm

Accessories - Navy blue bandana
Clothing - White t-shirt. gray shorts
Footwear - White high top Nikes
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[victoriarobinson642]

6011DMAZ - Aaron Leland Rivers Sr.

Added to the Doe Network. This page states that Walking Badger was found years later.

 

[Diavola]

6011DMAZ - Aaron Leland Rivers Sr.

Added to the Doe Network. This page states that Walking Badger was found years later.

I tried to find a source that confirms this, but was unable to.

 

[victoriarobinson642]

I tried to find a source that confirms this, but was unable to.

Yeah, I couldn't either, otherwise I would've asked mods to edit the title.

 

[Diavola]

Yeah, I couldn't either, otherwise I would've asked mods to edit the title.

I noticed the article the DoeNetwork has as a source has three comments but you can't access them unless you are subscribed, so maybe someone wrote something there.

 

[citizen_sleuth]

I tried to find a source that confirms this, but was unable to.

https://www.fbi.gov/wanted/vicap/homicides-and-sexual-assaults/fred-joe-walking-badger---arizona

<BBM>
On May 21, 1994, Fred Joe Walking Badger (AI/M/43) and Aaron Leland Rivers, Sr. (AI/M/26) were working on a church in the Gila River Indian Reservation (GRIR), Arizona. This was the last known location for either victim. One month after their disappearance, the vehicle they were using was found burned in the GRIR area. Over five years later, on December 15, 1999, the remains of Walking Badger were located in water and identified through dental records.

 

[mlhenn]

MISSING - Aaron Leland Rivers Sr. | Solve the Case

Rivers was last seen working on building a Native American spiritual center in Wet Camp Village, Arizona, on the Gila River Indian Reservation, on May 21, 1994. He was working with another man, Fred Joe Walking Badger. The men left to run an errand and never returned home.

www.solvethecase.org

Circumstances of Disappearance:
Walking Badger's wife and Rivers's fiancee went home to make sandwiches, expecting the men to be there in an hour. They never came home; both men disappeared that day, along with a turquoise 1993 Pontiac Grand Am with the Texas license plate number 5D7-326. A month later, the Pontiac was found abandoned and burned in the Gila River area. In December 1999, five and a half years later, Walking Badger's remains were discovered and identified through dental records. Rivers remains missing, however. His disappearance, and Walking Badger's death, remain unsolved.

Additional Details:
Bureau of Indian Affairs - Office of Justice Services (602) 379-6600 Agency Case Number BO23294874

Case Last Updated:
Jul 22, 2024

Tasks - Can you help?​

Family DNA Submission

VICAP COMPLETED

Dental Records

Family Contact

DOE Network COMPLETED

NamUs Entry COMPLETED