Unidentified (suspected) human remains on private property near the entrance of Mount Rainier National Park are fueling questions.
UPDATE 11/3/2020:
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Special thanks to Missing from the Pacific Crest Trail Facebook account, for updating us on information regarding these remains. As reported by The News Tribune (Source): “There was camouflage clothing found, leading police to believe the person had been a hunter gone missing,” Pierce County Sheriff Department’s Spokesperson Ed. Troyer said.
The remains were found in early July 2020, just after 3 men – all in their 20s – were reported missing on Mount Rainier National Park.
Unrelated; also reported missing at Mount Rainier National Park:
The 3 men: Matthew Bunker, Vincent Djie, and Talan Sabbagh went missing at separate times between June 19, 2020 and June 26, 2020.
Each of the 3 men were Seattle residents. A few months later, University of Washington Professor, Dr. Sam Dubal, would also go missing.
Investigators reportedly believe that possible animal or logging activity scattered the remains, which include a human skull and several bones. A rifle and some clothing pieces were also found. (Source)
Some are wondering if the incidents are connected in some way. Were the men victims of rough terrain, avalanches and/or rockfalls which are common in the area, or something else entirely? The National Park Service (NPS) has issued reports of at least one of the hikers (Matthew Bunker – whose body was recovered at the base of Liberty Ridge) traveling with a group, though local reports suggest he was with only one other person.
The search for Vincent Djie and Sam Dubal remains ongoing, as searchers recovered the body of Talan Sabbagh (27) on August 3, 2020 from an off-trail drainage near Paradise.
The Pierce County Medical Examiner’s Office will examine the remains (which had not been buried) to determine how long they had been at the site and to identify the gender and age of the deceased person. No official connection between the discovered remains and the missing hikers has been made.
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