Skeletal remains found in a remote wooded area of Jefferson County seven months ago have been identified as a man missing from Tarrant missing for more than three years.

Michael Lynn Dillard, 49, was reported missing to the Jefferson County Sheriff’s Office on April 1, 2020. He was last known to be alive on Nov. 24, 2019, near Brookside.

On Dec. 13, 2022, about 5:41 p.m., skeletal remains were found on private hunting property in the 100 block of Sherry Street in Graysville, according to the Jefferson County Coroner’s Office.

The remains of Dillard were identified through DNA, Yates said. An autopsy did not reveal the cause of death, Chief Deputy Coroner Bill Yates said Friday.

The Jefferson County Sheriff’s Office is investigating the circumstances surrounding both the missing person case and the death.