Forensic analysis has led to positive identification following the discovery of a human skull a little more than a year ago, according to the Mohave County Sheriff’s office. A hiker found the skull on March 15, 2018 in a desert area off Historic Route 66, south of Oatman.
Sheriff’s office spokeswoman Anita Mortensen said the skull was sent to the University of North Texas Center for Human Identification for DNA analysis. She said the center recently informed local authorities that the remains are those of Ilaisa V. Vaitai, 68.
Mortensen said Vaitai had been reported missing from his home in Ontario, California in May, 2017. She said no cause of death has been determined but that authorities are certain that there was no foul play. The sheriff’s office was unable to provide information regarding how Vaitai made it to the location where his skull was discovered
