KYLE Clinkscales was a University of Auburn student who went missing in 1976.
On February 19, 2023, Clinkscales' remains were identified.
Who was Kyle Clinkscales and when did he go missing?
Clinkscales was a 22-year-old Auburn student who hailed from LaGrange, Georgia.
On January 27, 1976, he set out from LaGrange to return to Auburn for his junior year. However, he was never heard from again.
He was working as a bartender at the Moose Club at the time.
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Clinkscales was driving a Ford Pinto Runabout at the time of his disappearance.
Clinkscales' father, John Dixon Clinkscales, published a book in 1981 called “Kyle’s Story: Friday Never Came.”
His father died in 2007, and his mother died in January 2021. Clinkscales was their only child.
What are the developments in Kyle Clinkscales' case?
On December 8, 2021, deputies with the Chambers County Sheriff's Office were notified of a submerged car found in a creek off County Road 83.
Troup County Sheriff James Woodruff said at a news conference that upon investigation, authorities found what they think are human bones, along with identification and credit cards belonging to Clinkscales.
Sheriff’s spokesman Sgt. Stewart Smith said other personal items identified as belonging to Clinkscales also were found inside the vehicle.
As reported by NBC News, on February 19, 2023, police announced that the remains found in December 2021 have been identified as Clinkscales'.
In a news release posted to Facebook, the Troup County Sheriff's Office said, in part: "On February 19, 2023, the Troup County Sheriff’s Office was notified by the Troup County Coroner’s Office that those remains were positively identified as that of Kyle Clinkscales.
"The Coroner’s Office received this information from the GBI at which time they released it.
"Upon further discussion with the GBI, this analysis was completed by a FBI lab at the request of the GBI. At this time an official report has not been completed or released by the GBI as it relates to a manner of death.
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"We certainly appreciate the work of the FBI and the continued work of the GBI in this case."
Was there foul play in Kyle Clinkscales' case?
As CBS News reported, Troup County police said in the past that Clinkscales was killed.
The outlet noted that in 2005, authorities arrested two people in connection with the student's case.
Police said that Clinkscales' parents got a phone call from a man who claimed to have seen the disposal of Clinkscales' remains when he was seven years old.
As the outlet stated, the man said that Clinkscales' body "was covered with concrete in a barrel and dumped into a pond."
However, the two people "were accused of making false statements." One went to prison for over seven years after pleading guilty to two counts of making false statements.
The other was not formally charged.
At the time of publication, Clinkscales' cause of death is still unknown.
