Dismembered remains found by a hiker in Utah were found to belong to a fisherman who had been missing for nearly three decades, cops say.
In May, a hiker and his dog came across a hiking boot with the remains of a human foot inside on the shores of Fish Lake, the Sevier County Sheriff’s Office said in a Facebook post Tuesday.
Investigators determined the shoe was only made for one year, in 1996, and the sheriff’s office had a missing persons case from 1997.
David White of Washington, Utah — about a two and a half hour drive southwest of Fish Lake — had vanished in September of that year while on a fishing trip. There were no witnesses.
White had rented a hotel room near the lake and he was supposed to go fishing with his friends, but the plans fell through, the sheriff’s office said. White decided to go fishing anyway and was never seen again.
His boat was later reportedly found trolling across the lake, but no one was on board, the Sheriff’s office said. Trolling is a fishing method where a baited line trails behind a boat.
“A shoe and hat were found floating in the water giving a possible indication where White was believed to have fallen in,” according to the Facebook post.
The initial search for White lasted five days with no further evidence found, and now, just about 28 years later, his family has some closure.
DNA was taken from the boot and one of White’s daughters and testing showed a “99.9994% certainty” the samples were related.
Stefanie Bennett, one of White’s daughters, said in a statement: “We are also deeply grateful to the individual and his dog who found the shoe – without them, we would not be where we are today.”
She also thanked the authorities and others for “their incredible support and tireless efforts.”
Sheriff Nathan J. Curtis said in a statement: “This case has been on the mind of every one of the SAR [search and rescue] members who were involved in the search 28 years ago. It is good to finally have some closure for the family and the searchers.”
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