This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2016, and information in the article may be outdated. It is provided only for personal research purposes and may not be reprinted.
Kane County sheriff's investigators are working to verify the identity of skeletal remains discovered by a hiker near Lake Powell on Sunday.
Investigators who responded to the area — located west of U.S. Highway 89 and less than a mile north of the state line — found numerous bones, and several items of clothing scattered for about 150 yards, according to a news release posted on the sheriff's office Facebook page.
A driver license and credit card belonging to Michael Theo Schimmel, from Page, Ariz., was found near the clothing, the news release said.
The remains, which have been in the area for two years or more, and clothing were sent to the state medical examiner's office for identification and to attempt to determine the cause of death, the news release said.
Dental records also were sent to the medical examiner to aid in the attempt to verify if the remains belong to Schimmel.
Investigators, meanwhile, were continuing to collect evidence and follow up on leads in Page, and the surrounding area.
Anyone who may have known Schimmel and or may have information that could help in the ongoing investigation is encouraged to contact the Kane County Utah Sheriff's Office at 435-644-4916, or 435-644-2349.