The Pulikla Tribe of Yurok People has spent the last three months working to find one of their enrolled tribal citizens: Brandyone \u201cBrandon\u201d Salazar. The 23-year-old was last seen in the early morning hours of Sunday, March 22, in Klamath, California.<\/p>\n
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Brandon\u2019s cousin, Fawn Murphy, told Dateline she is the tribal chairperson for the Pulikla Tribe, and she\u2019s been leading the charge in the search for Brandon. \u201cWe would just meet in the morning, go over our notes, coordinate, get out, search for the day,\u201d she said. But \u201cwhen you don\u2019t really have the technical expertise or all of the tools you need, it is very difficult.\u201d<\/p>\n
![\"Brandon](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/Brandon-Salazar-smiling-car-selfie-6d5104.png\")
Brandon SalazarFawn Murphy<\/p>\n
\u201cOur tribe is very, very small,\u201d Fawn said. \u201cWe need coordination, and we need to get the word out.\u201d<\/p>\n
Fawn says Brandon loves the traditions of his tribe. \u201cI remember he expressed a real interest in traditional eeling, and so I was able to get him some eel hooks,\u201d she said. Brandon also participated in ceremonial dances and wore traditional regalia. \u201cHe\u2019s got this great big, really bright, happy smile.\u201d <\/p>\n
\u201cHe\u2019s very traditional,\u201d Brandon\u2019s mother, Brandy Mendoza, shared. \u201cHe just brightens up the world with him in it.\u201d Brandon is Brandy\u2019s fourth child, but the eldest boy. \u201cHe\u2019s, like, the oldest in all of them, because he wanted to be the bigger brother, \u2018cause he\u2019s the first boy in the family,\u201d she said. \u201cHe was protective.\u201d Brandon lived in Crescent City, California, with a roommate. But in the days prior to his disappearance he had been staying with his mom in Klamath. <\/p>\n
According to Fawn, the last sighting of Brandon was around 2:00 a.m. near the Country Club Bar and Grill in Klamath. \u201cIt was around the time the bar was closing,\u201d she told Dateline. \u201cThere was some sort of an altercation where Brandon took off running.\u201d <\/p>\n
Fawn says the bar is right near Highway 101 and the Klamath River. According to Fawn, a Yurok Tribal public safety officer witnessed Brandon jump over a fence. \u201cHis sweatshirt got caught up on the fence,\u201d she said. The officer grabbed the sweatshirt, which Fawn says was taken into evidence. <\/p>\n
Fawn told Dateline that around 2:20 a.m., Brandon sent a final text message asking a friend to come pick him up near a boat launch for the Klamath River. The friend told the family that by the time they arrived, Brandon was not there. Fawn says the family learned from the Yurok Tribal Police that Brandon\u2019s phone also \u201cpinged right near the Klamath River\u201d right around the time his last text was sent. <\/p>\n
An official missing person report was filed, and California Highway Patrol initiated a Feather Alert<\/a> on behalf of the Del Norte County Sheriff\u2019s Office on March 23. Brandon\u2019s case is also listed<\/a> on the State of California Department of Justice Office of the Attorney General\u2019s website.<\/p>\n Dateline reached out to the Yurok Tribal Police Department for comment on Brandon\u2019s case and its investigation, but has not yet heard back. The Del Norte County Sheriff\u2019s Office has also not yet responded to Dateline\u2019s request for comment. <\/p>\n Fawn says the searches for her cousin have focused on the Klamath River area where his phone last pinged. They used boats and an underwater drone with sonar, but Fawn says nothing was found.<\/p>\n The possibility that Brandon is in the water is of great concern to the family. \u201cHe was afraid of water,\u201d Fawn said. \u201cThe Klamath River is pretty swift-moving, and we went down to that boat launch area to kinda look, and it — it is pretty — a steep drop-off.\u201d <\/p>\n The family is at a loss as to what happened to Brandon that night. \u201cWe don\u2019t know if it was an accident,\u201d Fawn said. \u201cWe don\u2019t know if he took off because he was scared, but that\u2019s kind of a far-fetched thing. Or we don\u2019t know if somebody purposely hurt him.\u201d <\/p>\n Either way, Brandon\u2019s family is \u201cdesperately wondering what happened,\u201d Fawn said. <\/p>\n \u201cWe\u2019re in a small town, and it\u2019s a close-knit community,\u201d Fawn said. \u201cBut there\u2019s rumors swirling around.\u201d She\u2019s hoping that if someone out there knows something about what happened to Brandon, they will come forward with that information now. <\/p>\n Brandon is about 5\u20197\u201d and 145 lbs. He has short, dark brown hair, is usually clean-cut, and has a small gap between his top front teeth. He was wearing a white T-shirt, black joggers, and white Nike shoes when he went missing. He has tattoos on his forearms\/elbows and near his wrist, including a traditional tribal friendship design. <\/p>\n The Pulikla Tribe of Yurok People is offering a $10,000 reward for \u201cinformation leading to the safe return or information leading to the location of the missing person Brandyone Salazar.\u201d <\/p>\n If you have any information about Brandon\u2019s disappearance, please call the Yurok Tribal Police at 707-237-5702.<\/p>\n![\"Missing](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/Missing-Person-Alert-for-Brandon-Salazar-b01999.jpg\")
Missing Person Poster for Brandon SalazarFawn Murphy<\/p>\n