OPP say a man whose body was found in West Nipissing in 2010 has now been identified thanks to advanced DNA testing.
But they say as the matter did not involve foul play, and "out of respect for the family's privacy, we will not be releasing the male's name."
On September 2, 2010, officers from the now defunct West Nipissing Police Service were called to an area on Lac Clair Road, north of Highway-17. Human remains had been found by a member of the public.
The investigation was taken over by the OPP when the Nipissing West force amalgamated with the OPP.
The postmortem examination found no signs of foul play, but the man had no ID and could not be identified, says a news release. Missing person reports and fingerprint records were checked across Canada and the United States and details were also released to the media. Other public appeals included releasing a facial reconstruction of the individual.
Back then police believed he was just passing through town, and may have been a hitchhiker. He is thought to have been dead for two weeks to six months when found.
West Nipissing Police held a news conference in 2015 hoping media exposure would solve the then four-year-old case. On display was this facial reconstruction, modelled after the actual skull of the dead man.
See: Do you recognize this face?
In 2023 the OPP, in conjunction with the Office of the Chief Coroner (OCC), Ontario Forensic Pathology Service (OFPS) and Toronto Police Service, was able to utilize advanced DNA testing, known as Investigative Genetic Genealogy (IGG) testing or Forensic Genealogy.
Through whole genome sequencing, the samples matched one collected from an individual listed in a family DNA tree. These results were then confirmed by additional family DNA testing by the OCC and OFPS.
The testing has confirmed the identity of the body as a male who was born in 1964. Before his death, he had been living in the Windsor area.
Investigators and Victim Services have spoken with the individual's family.