Mounties ask for help identifying human remains found in RM of Moose Jaw

Mounties are appealing to the public for help as police try to identify human remains found last month in the RM of Moose Jaw.

According to the RCMP, the remains were found at a makeshift campsite “in a deeply forested area” of the RM on April 28. Police said the body has likely been in the area for at least 10 to 12 years, but there’s no indication that foul play was a factor and the death has been deemed non-suspicious.

Working with a forensic anthropologist and pathologist, police turned up a number of items at the campsite including clothing, bags and toiletries.

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“One specific item helped investigators narrow down a timeframe for when the individual may have been in the area,” the RCMP said in a statement. “A tube of toothpaste with a 2013 expiry date was located. Investigators contacted the manufacturer and learned that, given the expiration date, it was manufactured no earlier than 2012.”

Police said they’re releasing images of the items in the hope that the remains can be identified and provide some relief to the person’s family and friends.

Bags and a shoe found along with human remains in the RM of Moose Jaw. Police noted that the shoe features French writing. (Saskatchewan RCMP/Submitted)

“This is someone’s loved one and at the end of the day, we would love to be able to bring closure to that family,” Cpl. Craig Park with the RCMP’s Historical Case Unit, said in a statement.

“We are reaching out to the public in the hopes that someone out there recognizes one of the items we recovered, or that it helps jog someone’s memory of an interaction or sighting of this person.”

The investigation is still in the early stages, police said, and anyone with information that could help the case or identify the remains was asked to contact the RCMP Historical Case Unit at 639-625-3156 or make an anonymous report through Crime Stoppers.