Missing and missed: RCMP and Family want to know what happened to James Barnes

Fort St. John RCMP and the public continue to look for James Joseph Edmund Barnes who was reported missing to Fort St. John RCMP on the evening of Friday, October 18, 2024, after failing to return home from a hunting trip.

Photos from media release

In a media release, Police stated that they believe James may have been hunting grouse in the Chetwynd area and Chetwynd RCMP were also notified of the file just after midnight on October 19, as search areas were expanded.

James left his residence in the morning, in a grey 2004 Chevrolet pickup, BC license plate LJ1 079, along with his golden retriever, Murphy and was last seen by a third party between 11:00 and 11:30 a.m. on Ground Birch Road, a side road off 269 Road.

Police later located the truck in the area, with some personal effects including a wallet, keys and his firearm, but no sign of James or Murphy.

Barnes is described by RCMP as a 28-year-old Caucasian male, approximately five-foot-eleven (180 centimetres) and 201 pounds (91 kilograms). He has brown hair, brown eyes and a large moustache. He was last seen wearing a green or blue TC Energy baseball cap, a green or blue hoodie and jeans, as per the media release.

RCMP would like to remind anyone who may have seen Barnes, the vehicle or his dog Murphy, on October 18, 2024, in the Groundbirch area, to please contact police with information that could help solve this file.