On the tenth anniversary of Dylan Koshman’s disappearance, his family has returned to Edmonton in search of answers.

According to police, Koshman went missing on October 11, 2008. The then 21-year-old was last seen leaving his home near 104 Street and 33 Avenue after an argument with his roommates, who were also his cousins. Koshman’s girlfriend reported him missing on October 15. A year later, several leads and search attempts had not yielded any more information as to what happened to him.  

Melanie Alix, Koshman’s mother, drove to Edmonton from Moose Jaw, Sask., Saturday with plans to meet Edmonton Police Service Tuesday.

She said the ten years her son has been missing have felt very long and have left her with many questions.

“Where is he, is he okay? Is he hurting?” she asked.

“The majority of us believe he is gone from this earth. We have no other explanation. Is there hope? For sure, but our hope is also to find him no matter what and get the answers that we desperately need. We need the truth.”

At the end of March 2017, EPS confirmed the homicide unit had taken over Koshman’s case and that it had been involved since 2015.

His family learned about the change in classification through the media. The news has both confused and inspired Koshman’s sister.

“It kind of seemed like a cold case, and now there’s some renewed hope that there’s more information out there and the police are hopefully getting closer,” Tara Koshman told CTV Edmonton.

“But unfortunately, when we go see them they still say they have no indication he’s deceased. So I have no idea why they changed it over and why they announced it like this.”

She added: “It’s all speculation on what they could have and really, it drives a person crazy not knowing.”

Koshman’s family has tried to meet with authorities every year, and said coming back to Edmonton to meet investigators face-to-face is the best way to stay updated.

“We have to show support for each other and make sure Edmonton doesn’t forget Dylan. He’s still missing,” said Alix.

While in Edmonton, Alix will meet with historical homicide detectives. Alix has questions about the use of her son’s DNA, which was submitted to the national databank earlier this year and could help identify Koshman’s remains if his body was found in another province.

According to Alix, there are no new tips in her son’s case and so the family is depending on the public to bring forward more information.

“I’m just praying there’s someone out there will come forward that knows something and can bring so much peace to so many people,” Koshman’s mother said.

“It’s hard waiting but I do believe that we will someday find out what happened to Dylan.”

Koshman is described as a Caucasian male, approximately 175 centimetres (5’9”) tall and weighing 86 kilograms (190 pounds). He was also said to have short brown hair, hazel eyes, slight scars on his left cheek and left eyebrow, and earrings in both his ears.

In 2017, police set up a tip line specifically for this case: 780-391-5444.