Suspected homicide victim identified 31 years after human remains found by children in Indiana field

Human remains discovered 31 years ago south of Indianapolis have been identified as a man from South Carolina, authorities said.

Relatives of Michael Benjamin Davis said they had lost contact with him in the late 1980s, the Johnson County coroner’s office said.

In 1993, children found the remains in a field near Interstate 65 in what is now a golf course, in in Greenwood, Indiana, according to Othram, a lab that works with police to assist in human identification cases.

The remains were taken to the University of North Texas where Othram said it was determined that the individual was a male under 30 years old who stood between 4’10” and 5’4″.

“Despite extensive efforts by law enforcement investigators to identify the man, no matches were found, and the case went cold due to a lack of investigative leads,” Othram said.

Decades later, DNA testing and genealogy work helped scientists determine the identity of the remains, the coroner’s office said in a written statement Sunday.

“Although this case has long been suspected of having been a homicide, the cause and manner of death have been ruled undetermined unless more information is discovered,” the coroner’s office said.

Davis was born in Richland County, South Carolina, in 1965, and would have been in his mid-20s at the time of his death. according to Othram.

Davis’ family plans to travel to Indiana to collect the remains and speak to news media Thursday, the coroner’s office said.