Human remains discovered in Tennessee more than 20 years ago have been identified

KNOXVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — Human remains discovered more than two decades ago near an interstate in Knoxville, Tennessee, have been identified, the Knox County government announced on Monday.

Genetic testing identified the person as Brian A. Sanderson. He was originally from Vermont and was 54 years old when he died, according to Chris Thomas, Knox County Regional Forensic Center administrator. Thomas did not know how long Sanderson had been in Tennessee and declined to say how he died.

Sanderson’s remains were first discovered on Nov. 30, 2003, when a passerby found them by an Interstate-275 entrance ramp, according to a Knox County social media post.

The Knoxville Police Department and an anthropology team from the University of Tennessee worked together on the original recovery and examination of the remains. As DNA testing and forensic methods improved over the years, they continued to attempt an identification. In 2008 they submitted a DNA sample to the National Missing and Unidentified Persons System. In 2017, the Regional Forensic Center took possession of the remains and began its own investigation, determining that they belonged to a white male who was roughly 5 feet (1.52 meters) tall and between the ages of 40 and 60.

In 2022, the county used a federal grant to hire Othram, a private company that specializes in solving cold cases through DNA analysis and genealogy. The company identified Sanderson.

“We work diligently every day to try to identify every decedent and connect them with their next of kin, regardless of how long they’ve been here,” Thomas said in the social media post. “We want the families to have closure.”