FOX31 Denver

20 people remain unidentified in Colorado since 2013

Dara Bitler

Artist rendering of man found in Fort Lupton in 2018 (NamUs)

DENVER (KDVR) — Since 1952, there have been 90 bodies found in Colorado that remain unidentified, according to the National Missing and Unidentified Persons System.

Of the unidentified persons cases, 20 are from the last 10 years.

The Problem Solvers are working to highlight cold cases in our state. Here is a look at the unidentified persons cases for the last 10 years in Colorado.

Skeletal remains found in Pueblo County in 2022

A man’s skeletal remains were found on Sept. 25, 2022, on private property in eastern Pueblo County.

The man was described as:

Skeletal remains found in Weld County in 2022

The skeletal remains of a woman were found an unincorporated area of Weld County on April 27, 2022.

The woman was described as:

The NamUs case said the woman was found with the following clothing items:

Human skull found in El Paso County in 2020

NamUs said a bow hunter found the skull of a man in a valley with game trails and a small stream on Oct. 6, 2020.

The skull was located northeast of Woodland Park in a wooded area in El Paso County.

There is limited information on this case because NamUs said only partial skeletal parts were located and those were not recognizable.

Skeletal remains found in Delta County in 2020

The skeletal remains of a man were found in Paonia on April 23, 2020. NamUs said the man’s body may have been in the elements for up to two years before the remains were discovered.

The man was described as:

There is limited information on this case because NamUs said the skeletal remains were not recognizable.

Skeletal remains found in Ouray County in 2019

This case has very limited information from NamUs. The partial skeletal remains of an unknown person were found in Ouray County on Oct. 2, 2019. The remains were described as unrecognizable.

Body of man found in Trinidad in 2019

The body of a man was found in an empty shed in Trinidad on Sept. 15, 2019.

NamUs said the man’s first name might have been “Fred”. He was described as being a white man, but no other identifying information was provided.

Body of man found in Denver in 2019

The body of man believed to be experiencing homelessness was found by a woman walking her dog in Bear Creek Park on Aug. 29, 2019.

The man was wearing a white polo with “Denver Lacrosse” across the left shoulder, navy blue sweatpants, long white socks, black watch on left wrist, and Black and blue New Balance tennis shoes.

The man was described as:

Body of man found in Pueblo in 2019

A man’s body was found floating in the Fountain River in Pueblo on June 7, 2019. NamUs said the body was floating in the river for approximately one week.

The man was described as:

The man was wearing blue pants and a red, short sleeve t-shirt at the time his body was discovered.

Skeletal remains found in Fort Lupton in 2018

The skeletal remains of a man were found by surveyors in a rural area near Fort Lupton on Dec. 7, 2018.

The man was described as:

This is an artist rendering of what the man may have looked like:

Artist rendering of man found in Fort Lupton in 2018

NamUs said the man was found with several items, which included:

Human skull found in Lawson in 2018

NamUs said the skull of an adult man was found on an unidentified property in Lawson on May 11, 2018. No other information was provided in this case.

Skeletal remains found in Clear Creek County in 2018

NamUs said a woman’s jawbone was found by a hiker in unincorporated Clear Creek County on April 4, 2018. The information on this case is limited because the skeletal remains were limited.

Human skull found in Nederland in 2017

NamUs said a hiker in Boulder County found a human skull near Mudd Lake on Oct. 2, 2017.

An artist created a rendering of what the man might have looked like:

He is described as being 30-60 years old at the time of his death. He may have died between 2012-2017, NamUs said.

Skeletal remains of man found in Pueblo in 2017

The skeletal remains of a man were found after a grass fire in Pueblo on April 17, 2017. NamUs said it was determined that the remains were in the area for several months to several years before the fire.

The man was described as:

Body of man found in Aurora in 2016

The body of a man believed to be experiencing homelessness was found in the hallway of an apartment building on Dec. 13, 2016. NamUs said he may have gone by the name “Oscar Montoya”.

The man was described as:

The man was wearing a black watch and a yellow and grey metal ring, NamUs said. He also had a black baseball hat with blue “HR” letters and a black snow hat with “TAMAYO” on it.

Body of man found in Holly in 2015

NamUs said the body of a man who was believed to be experiencing homelessness was found in a ditch in Holly on Dec. 12, 2015. It is possible the man had been in the area since Oct. 30, NamUs said.

The man was described as:

A brown leather belt with a horseshoe pattern and round gold buckle was found near the man’s body.

Skeletal remains of woman found in Silver Plume in 2014

The skeletal remains of a woman were found om Silver Plume on April 15, 2014. Information about where the remains were found were not provided by NamUs.

It is estimated that the woman died sometime between 2004-2011.

She was described as:

Only part of the woman’s skeleton was discovered.

Skeletal remains of man found in Watkins in 2014

NamUs said the skeletal remains of a man were found in a drainage ditch in Watkins by irrigation workers on Feb. 28, 2014.

The partial remains were DNA tested and determined to be a man under 50 years old. No other identifying information was provided.

Skeletal remains of man found in Boulder County in 2013

The skeletal remains of a man were found in Longmont after a flood in the area.

“Remains may have been excavated as much as 50 years ago and were part of the VFW “Last Man Standing” Club. Remains appear consistent with historical/archaeological specimen, and may have no forensic significance; however, families in the area would like DNA analysis to determine whether or not this could be their long lost relative,” NamUs explained.

The man was described as:

Skeletal remains of woman found in Lakewood in 2013

NamUs said the partial skeletal remains of a woman were found in a cauldron in the shed of a home that was on the market to be sold on Oct. 17, 2013.

There is limited information about the remains of the woman because only part of her skeleton was found.

Body of man found in Pueblo County in 2013

The body of a man believed to be experiencing homelessness was found in a field near the Fountain River on May 1, 2013.

He was described as:

NamUs said the man was wearing a black Harley Davidson t-shirt, blue jeans, and socks.

Highlighting cold cases in Colorado

Here are some of the other cases we’ve highlighted:

If you ever have a cold case you would like us to feature, please fill out this form or send an email to dara.bitler@digital-staging.kdvr.com-

The National Missing and Unidentified Persons System shows there over 20,000 open missing persons cases in the United States and over 300 in Colorado.