DNA Research Now Identifies Decade Long Missing Texan

Gatesville, Texas is scratching their head as a community to understand what happened to one of their own nearly 10 years ago after a body found in 2022 was positively identified by DNA as a missing person not seen since the summer of 2015.

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After the skeletal remains were discovered a couple of years ago, the Coryell Sheriff's Office requested a saliva sample from Julia Middleton and sent it to The University of North Texas Center for Human Identification in Fort Worth.

What was the name of the person who's skeletal remains were discovered?

The saliva sample collected from Middleton made it possible to positively identify her son Cole Younger Middleton, who nobody had seen or heard from in nearly a decade. He was 21 when he was reported missing by his mother in September of 2015.

Based on the condition of the remains and the setting they were discovered, it will be extremely difficult to determine what happened to Middleton. At the time of the investigation into his disappearance, no foul play was believed to have been involved.

Why did it take so long to find Middleton's body?

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According to this KCEN article, Middleton's body was found in a rural field that was known to be frequented by several hogs and other wildlife. Also, until the saliva sample was submitted, there was zero data to compare the remains when they were discovered in 2022 until just recently.

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Positively identifying Middleton does bring some closure to the family, but the case also remains cold until some new information is brought to the attention of investigators.