GRAYS HARBOR COUNTY, Wash. — A 20-year mystery has come to an end in Washington state with the identification of skeletal remains of a former Oregon mayor.
The remains were initially discovered on a Washington beach in 2006. Investigators utilized genome sequencing and genetic genealogy to make the identification.
The Grays Harbor County Coroner confirmed through DNA testing that the remains were those of Clarence Edwin Asher, who disappeared while crabbing in Tillamook Bay on September 5, 2006.
Asher previously served as the mayor of Fossil, Oregon. He was also a dedicated volunteer fireman and ambulance driver.
He was 72 years old at the time of his death.
