Authorities announced the discovery of a body belonging to a Washington state woman in Oregon after she had been missing for eight months.
In an email to PEOPLE on Monday, March 3, the Oregon State Police (OSP) said it was notified about a previously crashed vehicle found near milepost 58.5 on Highway 30 — and that a body was found inside the vehicle.
“The driver was determined to be the registered owner, who was listed as a missing person out of Anacortes,” according to the OSP’s log dated Feb. 27. “Anacortes PD was notified and next of kin was contacted.”
The deceased driver was identified as Evelyn Krystl Smith, 78.
“She was still in her seatbelt and she was still in the vehicle, hand on the steering wheel,” Sheri Lauritsen, the victim’s niece, told ABC affiliate KOMO about the discovery of her aunt’s body.
According to the National Missing and Unidentified Persons System (NamUs), Smith was last seen at the Peace Arch Border Crossing on the afternoon of June 24, “being refused entry into Canada and re-entering the United States.”
It added that Smith left behind her phone and medications at her home and there was no activity on her banking account since her disappearance.
“She never returned to her residence, family and friends cannot reach her, and her vehicle (WA/AHW9250) has not been found,” NamUs reported at the time.
Smith was described as 5-foot 3-inches tall, weighing about 140 pounds. She was last seen wearing dark pants, an ombre-style long-sleeve T-shirt and sunglasses.
OSP also told PEOPLE that the discovery of Smith’s vehicle appeared to have been a crash that wasn’t immediately located or called in, adding “no suspicious circumstances noted.”
The vehicle was recovered, and the Columbia County Medicolegal Investigator’s Office was on scene, said OSP. An investigation is ongoing.
Smith’s family told KOMO that had a Silver Alert — an emergency alert system when a person 60 or over is missing and in danger — been issued immediately, their loved one’s vehicle would have been spotted en route to Oregon. They also told the outlet that Smith had bipolar disorder and stopped taking her medication.
“We’re all still kind of in shock,” Lauritsen told KOMO. “There are tears every single day.”
In a statement later shared with PEOPLE on March 3, Lauritsen wrote: “When a person is disabled and has medical and mental health issues, Silver Alerts should be activated immediately. The police taking the position that if a person doesn’t want to be found then there is nothing they can do, and if she isn’t a harm to herself or anyone else they can’t do anything. A person with mental issues off their medications is a harm to themselves!”
“Lynn had a brain aneurysm 20 years ago and that caused a lot of mental health issues, “ Lauritsen added. “She was off her meds, the doctors failed her, the emergency room released her and the police did nothing to help find her.”
PEOPLE reached out to the Anacortes (Washington) Police Department and the Washington State Patrol (WSP) for additional information and comment on March 3.
“We are extremely sorry for the loss of Evelyn Smith. Our heart goes out to the family as they deal with this tragedy,” Sergeant Jermaine Walker, a public information officer at WSP, told PEOPLE via email.
Walker then laid out WSP’s protocol for issuing Silver Alerts.
“The WSP issues Silver Alerts at the request of local law enforcement, which in this case was the Anacortes Police Department,” Walker explained. “Once a request is received, WSP will immediately issue an alert activation. In this case, we received a request for a Silver Alert activation from Anacortes PD on [June 24]6/27/24 and issued the alert the same day as per protocol.”
“Again, we are very sorry for this tragic outcome,” Walker added.
A GoFundMe was established on behalf of Smith’s surviving family members.
Smith’s family told KOMO they are considering filing a complaint against the Border Patrol and the Washington State Patrol.