Human remains identified as ‘nomadic’ man found near Hoover Dam

Human remains discovered near the Hoover Dam nearly 15 years ago have been identified as those of a Michigan man who was last seen by family members in 1995.

The Mohave County Sheriff’s Office announced Tuesday that genetic testing has determined that bones found Nov. 11, 2009, by a construction worker near U.S. Highway 93 belong to William Herman Hietamaka.

the sheriff’s office said in a Facebook post that detectives received assistance from the Special Investigations Unit of the Othram Inc. Genetic Bureau and Laboratory. in Texas to put an end to years of efforts to obtain clues to the man’s identity.

Multiple DNA analyzes were unsuccessful

In February 2022, a sheriff’s office detective submitted a bone sample to the Arizona Department of Public Safety laboratory and requested a DNA profile that could be sent to the Combined DNA Index System for analysis and identification. The sheriff’s office said a sample was also sent to the University of North Texas, but both attempts to identify the man were still unsuccessful.

In April, Mohave County investigators were informed that Othram had received a forensic genetic genealogy grant in the case, which allowed a DNA profile of the man to be created and submitted to a genealogy database for examination.

This month, investigators received a report that the man was descended from ancestors born in the mid-19th century and living in Michigan, prompting Mohave County investigators to begin interviewing potential relatives, including Hietamaki’s siblings, who had not seen him since 1995.

The sheriff’s office said genetic testing of the siblings confirmed the remains were Hietamaka’s.

The man was known as a hitchhiker, a nomad

The sheriff’s office said Hietamaki, whose middle name was Herman, was born on April 4, 1950, and grew up near Trout Creek, Michigan.

After graduating from high school, Hietamaki began traveling and hitchhiking and “lived a nomadic lifestyle,” the sheriff’s office said.

The last time his family saw him was when he visited his sister in New Mexico in 1995. He also once lived in Las Vegas and, according to the sheriff’s office, traveled throughout the southwestern United States before his death.

The medical examiner’s office was unable to determine the cause of death, but the sheriff’s office said Hietamaki had seizures and was presumed to have died sometime between 2006 and 2008.

The sheriff’s office thanked Othram for helping investigators solve a decade-old case.

“The Hietamaki family has been placed on lockdown due to their involvement in identifying John and Jane Does,” the office said in the post.