Hiker stumbled on remains in 2019, Arizona cops say. Now they’re ID’d as missing man
Human remains found by a hiker at the base of a mountain in 2019 have been identified as a missing man, Arizona deputies say.
DNA technology helped identify the remains as Mark Austin Dunne, who was reported missing out of Phoenix in 2017, the Coconino County Sheriff’s Office said in a May 29 news release.
A hiker discovered human remains at the base of Mount Elden, about a 10-mile drive northeast of Flagstaff, on Nov. 2, 2019, deputies said.
Despite efforts to identify the remains, deputies said the person’s identity remained a mystery.
Deputies said they turned their efforts to forensic genetic genealogy and partnered with Intermountain Forensics, a forensic DNA testing company, in August 2023.
Genetic genealogy uses DNA testing coupled with “traditional genealogical methods” to create “family history profiles,” according to the Library of Congress. With genealogical DNA testing, researchers can determine if and how people are biologically related.
The company created a DNA profile for the unknown person and sent it off to genealogy databases for comparison, according to deputies.
By tracing the person’s family line, deputies said the company’s investigators identified Dunne as a possible match.
Family members submitted DNA samples to compare it with that of the remains, according to deputies.
This testing, coupled with additional investigation, led deputies to identify the remains as Dunne.
After failing to contact “his family for an extended time,” deputies said Dunne, who was living in Phoenix, was reported missing in March 2017.
Deputies said they are unsure of “when Dunne arrived in the Flagstaff area.”
Investigation shows “he had been camping in the area for an extended period,” according to deputies.
Dunne’s family described him as a “free spirit,” 12News reported in 2018.
His mother, Robin Feckner, told the news outlet he was always “a rebel” and “a drifter.”
Deputies said they could not determine Dunne’s cause of death, which remains unknown.
This story was originally published May 30, 2024 at 3:20 PM with the headline "Hiker stumbled on remains in 2019, Arizona cops say. Now they’re ID’d as missing man."
