Authorities identify headless body found in river as Idaho man

ASOTIN, WA – The badly decomposed body that was found March 21st in the Snake River near Chief Timothy Park has been identified as a 66-year-old Potlatch man who had been missing for nearly nine years, according to Daily Fly.

Asotin County Sheriff John Hilderbrand says while attempting to locate the identity of the subject, the body, found without a head last month, was taken to Seattle for Forensic testing to include DNA.

“Asotin County Detective Nichols was following leads of local missing persons when she contacted Moscow Police Department to check on a missing person from their jurisdiction. Detective Nichols contacted Moscow Detective Sergeant Will Krasselt who said this may be a subject missing from Nez Perce County,” Hilderbrand says in a press release.

Krasselt made contact with Sharon Thompson, the wife of the missing subject Gary Thompson of Potlatch.

“When the body was located, the body had keys in the pants pocket which were to a 2002 to a 2005 Dodge Pickup with an ARE key to a canopy. Gary Thompson did have a 2003 Dodge pickup with an ARE canopy,” Hilderbrand says.

Thompson’s wife went to the Moscow Police Department with the 2003 Dodge, where she met with officials.

“The keys that were located in the pocket of the victim unlocked the door to the pickup and started the truck belonging to Gary Thompson. Sharon Thompson identified another personal item found in the victims pockets that she believes belongs to Gary,” Hilderbrand adds.

Thompson had been missing since May 16, 2008 when it was believed that he had fallen off his boat and was presumed drowned while fishing the Clearwater River near Spalding.

“Asotin County Sheriff’s Office would like to thank the involved agencies that assisted in the investigation. The Asotin County Sheriff and Coroner’s office will continue with the identification process through DNA for confirmation,” Hilderbrand says.

This story originally appeared on DailyFly.com. It is posted here with permission.