The remains of a Kamloops missing for 54 years have been identified, several decades after they were found on a beach in the Gulf Islands.

The man, whose family asked for him to stay anonymous, was last seen in Coquitlam on May 27, 1967, before his family reported him missing to Kamloops RCMP. He was 41 years old at the time.

Five years after the fact, on Aug. 20, 1972, police found unidentified human remains on Saturna Island. An autopsy was unable to identify those remains, according to Southeast District RCMP Cpl. Jesse O’Donaghey.

But, O’Donaghey says the remains were exhumed in September to be analyzed, and despite complications from rotting, the remains were identified.

O’Donaghey says investigators compared the DNA to a sample from the daughter of the missing Kamloops man and were able to find a match.

“Through scientific advancements in identification processes, we are now able to solve such historic cases,” says Eric Pettit of the BC Coroners Service Special Investigations Unit, who says they partnered with police and the BC Institute of Technology to do lab work. “In this instance, we were able to piece together the puzzle that had been challenging us on Salt Spring Island since 1972.”

Further circumstances of the man’s disappearance remain unclear, but the family, in a statement, thanked police, the BC Coroner’s Service and others involved for reaching a conclusion in the case and providing them closure.