Home / Crime and Justice / Florida Cold Case Solved: Teen Missing Since 2015 Found
Florida Cold Case Solved: Teen Missing Since 2015 Found
28 Jan
Summary
- Skeletal remains found in Miramar Beach identified as missing teen Jacob Lyon.
- Jacob Lyon was reported missing in February 2016, last seen three months prior.
- DNA testing complexity prolonged the identification of remains by over two years.
In Florida, a significant breakthrough has been achieved in a cold case investigation spanning over a decade. Skeletal remains discovered in Miramar Beach on October 20, 2022, have been definitively identified as Jacob Lyon, a teenager who was reported missing in February 2016. At the time he was last seen, Lyon was 19 years old.
The discovery was made by a man clearing a wooded area, who stumbled upon the skeletal fragments. The District 1 Medical Examiner's office dedicated two years to identifying the remains. Due to the complexities of DNA testing on degraded and environmentally exposed samples, the Walton County Sheriff's Office sent additional samples to the Florida Department of Law Enforcement for advanced testing, a process that can take a considerable amount of time.
At the beginning of this year, the FDLE confirmed the remains belonged to Jacob Lyon. While this confirmation brings some measure of peace to his family, officials acknowledge it is not the outcome the community had hoped for. The Sheriff's Office, in conjunction with the Niceville Police Department, continues to investigate Lyon's cause of death, examining the recovery site and past evidence for clues. Lyon's mother expressed her grief and requested prayers for her family during this difficult time.
