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The 14-year-old Schenectady High School sophomore was last seen on Nov. 25, 2022, near the city's Mohawk River. Her mother reported her missing the following day.
Investigators spent months fruitlessly searching the water and surrounding areas with K9 units and dive teams before her body was finally recovered on Feb. 22, 2023.
A week later, Schenectady Police confirmed that Humphrey’s death was being investigated as a homicide. Authorities have not released a cause of death or identified any suspects since.
Humphrey’s mother, Jaclyn Humphrey, revealed on a GoFundMe campaign that the girl sneaked out of their home at around 11 p.m. on the night she disappeared to meet her ex-boyfriend, who was the last person to see her.
A jacket belonging to Humphrey was later found in the river with what appeared to be blood on the hood, her mother said.
Schenectady Police have not accused the ex-boyfriend of a crime.
In the year since Humphrey’s death, more than 3,000 people have joined the “Justice For Samantha Humphrey” Facebook page, where friends and loved ones share photos and stories of the teen.
Among the countless posts is one by Humphrey’s aunt, Nica Joy, encouraging followers to support a GoFundMe campaign aimed at raising money for billboards and a reward for information leading to an arrest in the case.
“We have collected ten thousand dollars to start, but with your help we hope to increase that significantly,” Joy said. “Our goal is to increase the reward in $5,000 increments as possible.”
On Thursday, Feb. 22, the one-year anniversary of Humphrey being found, Joy wrote that she was “in denial for a very long time” that her niece could’ve ended up in the Mohawk River.
“And then one year ago today, she did. And the reality hit me harder than anything I have ever faced in this lifetime,” she said. “I did not have the luxury of denial anymore. That illusion shattered. Sam was gone. And her killer remains free.”
“We need answers. We need closure. We need an arrest,” she continued. “We need a conviction. We need JUSTICE. It has been TOO LONG!!”
Joy’s campaign had raised nearly $6,000 as of Friday, Feb. 23. Those who wish to donate can do so here.
Anyone with information in the case is asked to contact the Schenectady Police Department at 518-382-5200 or visit the agency’s website.
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