Laverda Sorrell disappeared on the Navajo Nation in July of 2002 after a dinner. Her family said for the first time in months, they’ve been told new agents from multiple agencies are working on the case.
The FBI is investigating Sorrell’s case as a homicide. Still, even after our True Crime Arizona documentary shined a spotlight on her story, her family said they heard
nothing new from officials and were discouraged until they happened to be at our news station recently for an interview and made some calls while waiting in the lobby.
Those calls changed everything. “So, you two are making calls in our lobby?” asked True Crime Arizona correspondent Briana Whitney. “Correct,” said Velina Guy, Sorrell’s sister, and their family’s attorney and advocate, Darlene Gomez.
“And that’s the first time you’ve gotten a hold of somebody in,” Whitney trailed off. “Quite some time,” said Velina.
“Before today, when was the last time you heard from anybody in Laverda’s case?” asked Whitney.
“It’s been a while. I want to say probably 12 months,” Velina said.
It was renewed hope for Velina and Darlene. Darlene works pro bono for families part of the Missing and Murdered Indigenous Persons crisis known as MMIP. They learned not only is a new FBI agent on Laverda’s case, but a new U.S. assistant attorney, who focuses on native cases like this, is on it too. “We should be expecting something exciting in the near future. So, that there speaks volumes,” she said about what they told her on the phone.
New agents from multiple agencies are working on the case.
www.azfamily.com
