Overview

Last contact: March 24, 2011
Last known area: Anchorage, Alaska; reportedly staying at the Brother Francis Shelter
Age when missing: 36
Status: Missing; publicly unresolved
NamUs: MP54148
Anchorage Police case: 140021395

Main circumstances: Bereket Demsas was last heard from while living or staying in Anchorage in March 2011. He was not reported missing until May 27, 2014, more than three years later. Public records provide no verified explanation for his disappearance, no confirmed later sighting, and no publicly identified suspect or evidence establishing homicide.

Detailed Case Breakdown

Bereket Tekeste Demsas: The Unresolved 2011 Disappearance from Anchorage, Alaska

More than fifteen years after Bereket Tekeste Demsas disappeared in Anchorage, Alaska, his whereabouts remain unknown. Demsas was 36 years old when he was last heard from on March 24, 2011. Public case records indicate that he was staying at the Brother Francis Shelter in Anchorage around the time contact with him stopped.

Demsas was described as a Black/African American man standing approximately 5 feet 6 inches tall and weighing about 110 pounds. He had black hair and brown eyes. The available public records contain few details about what he was wearing, what belongings he may have carried, where he intended to go, or the circumstances surrounding his final known contact.

A Disappearance Followed by a Three-Year Reporting Gap

One of the most significant aspects of Bereket Demsas’s case is the length of time between his last known contact and the filing of the missing-person report.

Demsas was last heard from on March 24, 2011, but Anchorage Police Department records identify May 27, 2014, as the date his disappearance was reported to law enforcement. That means more than three years elapsed before the investigation was formally documented.

Publicly available information does not explain why such a long period passed before the report was made. The delay is important because it potentially complicated the effort to reconstruct Demsas’s movements in March 2011. By the time investigators received the report, potential witnesses’ memories may have faded, surveillance recordings would ordinarily have been long gone, and records or physical evidence that could have helped establish a precise timeline may have become more difficult to locate.

There is no publicly documented evidence establishing that Demsas left Anchorage voluntarily, suffered an accident, became the victim of a crime, or died. His disappearance therefore should not be characterized as a homicide unless authorities release evidence supporting that conclusion.

The Brother Francis Shelter Connection

The most specific publicly reported location connected with Demsas before his disappearance is the Brother Francis Shelter in Anchorage. Case summaries state that he was known to be staying there when he was last heard from in March 2011.

Beyond that fact, very little has been publicly released about his final days. Available records do not identify a confirmed person who saw Demsas leave the shelter, a destination he planned to visit, a vehicle connected to his disappearance, or a specific final location where investigators know he was physically seen.

That distinction is important: March 24, 2011 is publicly identified as his date of last contact, while Anchorage and the Brother Francis Shelter are the known geographic context of his disappearance.

Investigation and Missing-Person Records

The Anchorage Police Department is identified as the primary investigating law-enforcement agency. Its case number is 140021395. Demsas is also registered with the National Missing and Unidentified Persons System under NamUs MP54148.

The Alaska Department of Public Safety continues to include Demsas in the state’s missing-person data. Alaska’s missing-person list is described by the department as an active statewide resource updated daily.

A secondary case database reports that investigators have obtained family DNA, including reference samples from a sister and paternal cousin, for comparison purposes if unidentified human remains potentially connected to Demsas are located. The same source continues to describe the investigation as unresolved. Because detailed DNA information is not exposed in the publicly readable portion of the current NamUs page, this point should be treated as secondary-source information rather than a newly announced investigative development.

Latest Publicly Available Information

As of August 13, 2026, no verified public source located during this review reports that Bereket Demsas has been found or that his case has been solved.

The strongest current indication of the case’s status is that Demsas remains present in Alaska’s missing-person records and his NamUs profile remains publicly accessible as MP54148. Crime Solvers Central’s individual case record was most recently marked updated on August 9, 2026 and continued to describe him as missing, with Anchorage Police Department case number 140021395.

No publicly released suspect, named person of interest, confirmed sighting after March 2011, arrest, recovery of remains, or determination of what happened to Demsas was located in the sources reviewed.

The absence of a public update does not necessarily mean investigators have taken no action. Missing-person investigations may contain information that is not publicly released. What can be stated from the available record is that the case remains publicly unresolved.

Why the Case Remains Difficult

Bereket Demsas’s disappearance presents investigators with several obvious challenges. The most significant is the three-year interval between his disappearance and the official missing-person report. Public records also provide extraordinarily little information about his last movements, clothing, possessions, transportation, associates, or plans.

What remains is a narrow set of established facts: Demsas was 36 years old, he was in Anchorage, he had been staying at the Brother Francis Shelter, and his final recorded contact occurred on March 24, 2011. More than fifteen years later, authorities still have not publicly established what happened after that date.

Anyone with information about Bereket Tekeste Demsas’s disappearance should provide it directly to the Anchorage Police Department and reference case 140021395. Even information that appeared insignificant at the time could potentially help investigators reconstruct the circumstances surrounding his disappearance.