Overview
- Authorities announced the identification after Florida Department of Law Enforcement testing returned a positive match in January, confirming the remains as Jacob Lyon.
- Skeletal fragments were discovered on October 20, 2022, in a small wooded lot in Miramar Beach behind a former Sleep Inn that links to a subdivision.
- Lyon was reported missing by his mother on February 1, 2016, after he had not been seen for about three months.
- The District 1 Medical Examiner worked to identify the remains through 2024, then sent samples to state labs due to environmental degradation and limited genetic material.
- Walton County deputies and Niceville police say the cause and circumstances of death remain undetermined and ask anyone with information to call 850-892-8111.