Pollen may pinpoint the last location to U.S. of woman whose body found off Vancouver

VANCOUVER — Tiny specs of pollen have helped Vancouver police narrow down a last-known location to the Seattle and Portland area of a woman whose body was found floating off the city’s waterfront.

It’s a mystery police have wanted to solve for almost four years, when a tugboat crew discovered the body in English Bay in September 2022. An inflatable kayak was nearby and she had gummy candies, insulin and a small amount of Canadian dollars in her backpack but no identification.

A search effort across North America and through Interpol has found no missing person that matches the description of the woman in her 30s of African descent.

Vancouver police Sgt. Adam Donaldson said Monday that after four years of “chasing down every lead, they’ve hit a brick wall.”

That changed when police learned of a new forensic technique being used at a U.S. Customs and Border Protection lab that could analyze pollen spores on clothing to determine where a person may have spent time recently.

Sgt. Anton Schamberger said U.S. Customs agreed to accept some of the exhibits and they sent off the kayaker’s sweater and backpack.

They received the results last August, he said.

“Based on the pollen grains and fern spores found on the kayaker’s sweater, they were able to determine that the sweater itself had been exposed to an environment in the Pacific Northwest, somewhere between Portland and Seattle,” said Schamberger.

There was a near total absence of such pollen evidence from the Vancouver area.

Donaldson said police plan on chasing down the lead.

“We’re not saying that she lived in Seattle, or she was from Seattle, but that she likely spent her last days there based on this fallout analysis.”

An updated video has been released on the department’s social media channels and they’ll hold a news conference with the support of Seattle police on Tuesday in a push to find someone who may know the woman.

“The goal of this initiative is to trigger memories, generate new leads, and ultimately identify the woman so her family can be notified,” police say in a news release.

“This case has already drawn considerable attention due to its complexity and the mystery surrounding the woman’s identity.”

The video posted by police says tug Captain Jonas Grey recalled the moments when his crew found the body. He said they were moving through English Bay to pick up a barge when they saw what could potentially be a body in the water.

“We brought her alongside the recovery ladder. Went down, felt for a pulse, got her alongside,” said Grey of the woman’s body.

She was pronounced dead a short time later in hospital.

Donaldson said investigators have thrown out many theories, including that she might have got off a container ship and was trying to seek a better life.

“And we do know that if that was the case, then we know that there’s somebody out there who would want to know what happened to their loved one,” said Donaldson.

Det. Rebecca Matson said she is confident that the woman hasn’t been reported missing in Canada.

Matson said officers have checked available U.S. databases, and there is a good chance that she could be an American, but may not have been reported missing.

Matson said officers are appealing for more tips to help bring closure to the family.

“She is somebody’s sister, somebody’s daughter, somebody’s friend, somebody’s co-worker.

“There is no greater indignity in death than to not even have that death acknowledged. She needs a name, and we’re hoping that one person, we just need one person to recognize her,” said Matson.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published May 25, 2026.

Nono Shen, The Canadian Press