Search underway in B.C. backcountry for Alberta man missing since November

A search is underway in a remote and mountainous area of British Columbia where the burned-out vehicle of a missing Alberta man was found by hikers last November.

Marshal Iwaasa was studying at the Southern Alberta Institute of Technologyin Calgary and was last seen by his mother on Nov. 17 in his hometown of Lethbridge, Alta.

He was 26 at the time and had told family members he was returning to Calgary, but hasn't been heard from since.

Lethbridge police say Iwaasa's disappearance is considered suspicious, but there's no credible, corroborated or compelling information to suggest foul play or that the matter is criminal in nature.

Lethbridge police, the RCMP, search and rescue personnel, members of the Canadian Search and Disaster Dogs Association, and Iwaasa's family are conducting a comprehensive ground search of the area near Pemberton, B.C., Wednesday and Thursday.

A helicopter and all-terrain vehicles are being used in the search.

Investigators say there have been several reported sightings of Iwaasa across the country but they were unfounded.