ARIZONA — The remains of John Doe, found on the Arizona-Nevada border near the Hoover Dam in 2009, have been identified.

The body belonged to William Herman Hietamaki, born on April 4, 1950. According to authorities, the person was from Trout Creek, Michigan.

On November 11, 2009, construction workers were pouring cement on the Highway 93 widening project near the Hoover Dam when one of them found what appeared to be a bone. Mohave County Sheriff’s Office (MCSO).

Workers searched the area, found more bones, and realized the bones were human remains.

Construction workers and authorities conducted another search of the area and found “sun-bleached jeans, a damaged white towel, a sun-bleached red T-shirt, a black sneaker, and a green sleeping bag,” along with more bones. ”

An additional search days later resulted in the discovery of more remains. All evidence was turned over to the Mohave County Medical Examiner’s Office. Detectives spent years on this case and tried to get results, but to no avail.

How were the remains found near Hoover Dam identified?

On February 2, 2022, an MCSO detective collected a bone sample from the victim by the medical examiner. The sample was sent for analysis to an Arizona Department of Public Safety laboratory, requesting a DNA profile so it could be entered into the Combined DNA Index System (CODIS), a national DNA database maintained by the FBI.

Additionally, a sample was sent to the University of North Texas (UNT), where an extracted DNA sample was collected and stored. All efforts to identify the remains were unsuccessful.

In April 2024, investigators who were part of the sheriff’s office’s Special Investigations Unit (SIU) were alerted to: Otram Inc.The company, which has a genetics laboratory in Texas, said funding was available to cover Forensic Genetic Genealogy (FGG) for this case. The sample from UNT was sent to the Othram laboratory and a DNA profile was created and placed in a genealogy database for research for a genetic genealogist to review.

In October 2024, SIU investigators finally learned Hietamaki’s identity and spoke with relatives, who said he was known to travel throughout the Southwest and hitchhike.

Hietamaki, whose middle name is Herman, was last seen by his family in 1995 when he went to visit his sister in New Mexico. Public records show he lived in Las Vegas for a short time. Hietamaki had a history of epileptic seizures, according to MCSO.

The coroner was unable to determine the cause of death because his remains were badly decomposed but estimated that he died somewhere in 2006-08.