Public Safety and Solicitor General
The BC Coroners Service has confirmed the identity of an individual whose remains were found on Mount Hays near Prince Rupert in 1995.
He was Robert William Johnston, aged 19 years, of Prince Rupert.
Mr. Johnston went missing in 1981, and despite extensive searches, he could not be located. Human remains were located in 1995 by hikers on the south side of Mount Hays; however, DNA technology at the time was not advanced enough to produce a viable profile.
A recent initiative by the BC Coroners Service’s Identification and Disaster Response Unit to profile difficult unidentified remains cases, involving the International Commission on Missing Persons, produced a DNA profile which was compared to familial profiles and matched to Mr. Johnston.
The BC Coroners Service continues to investigate this death.
The family of Mr. Johnston has been notified of his death and on behalf of family members, the BC Coroners Service requests that the media respect their privacy at this difficult time.
