Fisherman Disappeared Decades Ago, Leaving Only His Empty Boat. Authorities Just Found His DNA in a Boot
David White disappeared in 1997 while fishing in Utah
In May of this year, a boot containing the remains of a human foot was found on the shores of Fishlake, where White's boat was earlier discovered
Testing showed a 99.99% match between samples of DNA taken from the remains and a daughter of WhiteAuthorities have identified the remains of a human foot found in a hiking boot nearly three months ago, linking them to a fisherman who vanished in September 1997.
In a Tuesday, Aug. 5, news release, the Sevier County Sheriff's Office announced that the boot was discovered on the shores of Fishlake, Utah, on May 16. Investigators later determined the shoe was manufactured in 1996, about a year before the disappearance of David White of Washington, Utah.
The sheriff's office said prior to his disappearance, White had been planning to go fishing with friends and rented a hotel room nearby. When those plans fell apart, White decided to go fishing anyway.
White's boat was later found trolling across Fishlake with no one on board. A shoe and hat were also found floating, which appeared to indicate that the fisherman may have fallen into the water, the sheriff's office continued.
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'There were no witnesses at the time. All of this was a mystery until now,' the news release stated.
The remains from the newly discovered boot were sent to the Utah Medical Examiners Office, authorities said. DNA samples were taken from both the remains and one of White's daughters, then sent to Bode Cellmark Forensics.
'Testing came back with a 99.9994% certainty the DNA samples were related, one being the paternal parent of the other. We were very excited to share this with the White daughters,' the Sevier County Sheriff's Office said.
Stefanie Bennett, White's daughter, said in a statement included in the sheriff's office news release, 'We would like to extend our heartfelt thanks to the Sevier County Sheriff's Office, SAR's, Detective Sgt Pearson, Detective Sgt Larsen, Sheriff Curtis, and Gary (Moulton) from Fishlake Lodge for their incredible support and tireless efforts.'
'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,' Bennett continued.
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Sevier County Sheriff Nathan J. Curtis expressed gratitude to those involved in the search for White over the years.
'This case has been on the mind of every one of the SAR members who were involved in the search 28 years ago. It is good to finally have some closure for the family and the searchers,' Curtis said in the press release.
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