Skeletal Remains Discovered in Florida Identified as 19-Year-Old Who Vanished in 2015
Human remains discovered while clearing a wooded area in Florida have been identified as a young man who disappeared nearly a decade ago, authorities confirmed.
The Walton County Sheriff’s Office (WCSO) announced that skeletal remains found in Miramar Beach in October 2022 belong to Jacob Lyon, who was just 19 years old when he went missing in 2015.
The remains were discovered on Oct. 20, 2022, by a man working to clear vegetation in a wooded area. According to officials, the location where the bones were found has since changed significantly due to development, making the discovery even more difficult to trace at the time.
For nearly two years, the District 1 Medical Examiner attempted to identify the remains. In late 2024, DNA samples were finally submitted to the Florida Department of Law Enforcement (FDLE) for further testing. In January 2025, authorities received confirmation that the remains belonged to Jacob Lyon.
“This is not the result our community hoped for,” the sheriff’s office said in a statement. “But for his family, we hope there is some peace in knowing that Jacob has been found.”
Jacob Lyon was last seen in November 2015 after staying with relatives in Niceville and Mossy Head, Florida. According to law enforcement records, he had been involuntarily committed to a hospital for psychiatric treatment just one month earlier, in October 2015.
After losing contact with her son, Lyon’s mother officially reported him missing in February 2016. The Walton County Sheriff’s Office worked alongside the Niceville Police Department to follow up on tips and leads over the years, but none led to answers.
Nearly ten years later, the discovery of Lyon’s remains has finally provided a form of closure.
Niceville Police Lieutenant John Lee told local media that helping Jacob’s mother find answers had remained a top priority. “Ten years is a long time,” he said. “But Jacob is home now. He’s back with his family.”
WCSO Major Dustin Cosson echoed that sentiment, saying the identification allows the family to begin healing. “Family can find a little bit of closure now,” he said, while adding that investigators hope additional answers may still come.
Authorities have not yet determined Jacob Lyon’s cause of death. The investigation remains open as officials continue to examine the circumstances surrounding how his remains ended up behind the site where a Sleep Inn once stood.
“If you saw the area back in 2022, it looked completely different than it does today,” Cosson explained, highlighting how time and development can complicate long-term missing person cases.
While many questions remain unanswered, officials say identifying Jacob Lyon brings an end to years of uncertainty — and allows his family to finally know where he was.