Remains of woman missing since 2004 discovered in Northern Idaho

PRIEST RIVER — The remains of a 34-year-old woman missing since 2004 have been found in a remote wooded area of Kootenai County, according to the Kootenai County Sheriff’s Office.

Christine Lott was reported missing from Bonner County on March 27, 2004. Lott’s remains were discovered along a Forest Service Road near Coeur d’Alene in February of 2016, according to a news release from the Kootenai County Sheriff’s Office. The news of her discovery was kept confidential until her husband could be located and interviewed by detectives.

Lott was reportedly last seen outside a grocery store on March 25, 2004. Her husband, Stephen, reportedly told investigators he went inside the store to buy milk and his wife asked to be alone to make a call from a pay phone outside. The Bonner County Daily Bee reports he then said he saw his wife Christine get in the cab of a red pickup truck with Washington plates.

In an interview with a detective, Lott admitted there was marital strife and the couple argued over his lack of employment, investigators said in 2012.

Stephen Lott moved to Arizona, where he was raising the couple’s children. His current whereabouts were not disclosed by investigators on Thursday.

The Bonner County Sheriff’s Office and Kootenai County Sheriff’s Office are investigating the case as a homicide. Anyone who had contact with the Lott Family in the 2004 time period, or who may have information regarding this incident, is asked to contact Major Crimes Detective J. Northrup by leaving a message at (208) 446-2237 or emailing him at jnorthrup@kcgov.us.