Dog leads hiker to discover remains of man missing for months in Alaska, police say

This story has been updated to correct the man’s age. McClatchy News has reached out to police to confirm additional details.

A dog ran off a hiking trail about 100 yards and discovered a body. Police think it’s a man who was reported missing months ago in Alaska.

Douglas Farnsworth, a 32-year-old from Juneau, vanished in September, the police department said. His family reported him missing Sept. 29, and his pickup truck was found parked at a hiking trail two days later.

For weeks, people searched the area for signs of Farnsworth with no luck.

On Sunday, Nov. 7, a hiker was walking their dog on the same trail police found Farnsworth’s pickup, officials said.

Their dog left the trail and ran up a hill. When the hiker followed the dog, they found human remains, police said.

“Clothing items consistent with those worn by Douglas Farnsworth when he went missing were located amongst the remains,” police said in a news release. “A cell phone and firearm were also located near the remains and they are believed to have been in Farnsworth’s possession.”

The body was sent to a medical examiner for an autopsy, and the case is still under investigation, police said.

Family members told news outlets they could identify the remains as Farnsworth, but only partial remains were found. They could not determine his cause of death, according to KTOO.

“That dog deserves a trophy,” his sister told the news outlet.

This story was originally published November 9, 2021 at 7:35 AM with the headline "Dog leads hiker to discover remains of man missing for months in Alaska, police say."