Kansas Bureau of Investigation says missing teenager has been found safe
UPDATE: The KBI announced that Alexandra Smith “was located safe.”
Original story:
State authorities say a missing Wichita teen may be in danger after she witnessed a homicide over the weekend in Wilson County.
Alexandra R. Smith, 17, has been missing from Wichita since July 6, 2025. She was 16 when she disappeared.
The Kansas Bureau of Investigation says she was last seen at a home in Wilson County on Sunday. The agency has issued an endangered persons advisory for her.
“Alexandra was a witness to a homicide, and authorities are concerned for her safety,” the KBI said in a news release. Her whereabouts “are unknown, and the public’s assistance is requested to help locate her,” it says.
Alexandra is white, about 5-foot-3, weighs around 105 pounds and has black hair and blue eyes. Authorities say she may be somewhere in or around Fredonia or Neodesha.
“If you see Alexandra, call 911 immediately. If you have other information about her whereabouts, please call the KBI at 1-800-KS-CRIME,” the release says.
The KBI announced earlier Monday that the Wilson County Sheriff’s Office had arrested 52-year-old William “Bud” Wescott of Coyville on suspicion of second-degree murder in Sunday’s fatal shooting of 37-year-old Lucas R. Pickell of Fredonia. The KBI said Pickell and three other people were using drugs in a fifth-wheel RV on property at 2105 Second St. in Coyville when he was shot around 7:10 p.m.
Pickell was outside of the RV when Wilson County Sheriff’s deputies showed up after someone reported the gunfire. Pickell died at the scene, the KBI said.
Wescott was charged Monday with one count of second-degree intentional murder, court records show. He faces 147 to 653 months in prison if convicted as charged. Court records did not yet list a lawyer for him on Monday evening.
Wilson County is in southeast Kansas.
This story was originally published March 9, 2026 at 5:29 PM.
