MCMINN COUNTY, Tenn. — The McMinn County Sheriff's Office said human remains found on February 14 belonged to a man who was reported missing in November.
They said before Darrell Foster was reported missing, a vehicle registered to him was found on his brother's property, Phillip Mooney, on County Road 782. Mooney said in September his brother had a history of drug use and said they had not seen each other for a while, according to a release from MCSO.
On November 12, Foster's daughter contacted MCSO to report her father as missing. She said the last time she spoke to him was in June or July 2021. Months later, on February 8. investigators spoke with Foster's sister who said their mother had passed away in October, but no one had heard from him.
According to a release from officials, many family members felt that Foster had likely died in an unknown location due to his past drug use.
On February 14, detectives got permission to search the property on County Road 782, where his vehicle had previously been found. They said they found a campsite during the search, along with some items belonging to Foster.
As the search continued, they found human remains. The remains were collected by the University of Tennessee Forensic Center.
The forensic center reached back out to the sheriff's office on February 16. They said the remains were compared with medical records and were identified as belonging to Foster. His family was notified of the results.
Authorities said the investigation is continuing as to what caused his death and specified that nothing indicated foul play.