A set of human remains found in Marion County in 1977 have been identified as a Lakeland man who went missing 41 years ago.
- Mark Duane Woodard went missing April 14, 1975
- Remains found two years later, authorities unable to ID
- Recent DNA analysis confirmed match
Mark Duane Woodard disappeared on April 14, 1975. He was 19 years old at the time.
Family members said Woodard was planning to leave the next day for Texas with two friends. He was carrying about $3,000 in cash on him.
The family said his friends told them Woodard never showed up and they left without him. He was never seen or heard from again.
"At first, it was horrible. My mom and dad just couldn't deal with it at all. It consumed them," said Woodard's sister, Diann Wells.
The Marion County Sheriff's Office said human remains were found in a wooded area near County Road 467 and SE 145th Street in Summerfield on March 22, 1977.
In 2009, bones from the remains were sent to the University of North Texas for DNA analysis and cross-reference with the Missing Persons Database. At that time, no matches were fond.
In 2015, the Polk County Sheriff's Office reviewed Woodard's case. Detectives sent his DNA to the University of North Texas again.
This time, a DNA analysis confirmed the sample was a match for Woodard.
Authorities aren't saying how Woodard died, and Wells says the discovery raises even more questions.
"I had accepted that I was never going to know. He's gone, that's the way it is," said Wells. "I accepted it and moved on with my life. Now, it's like, I want to know where, who, why?"
Woodard's death is being investigated by both the Marion County Sheriff's Office and the Polk County Sheriff's Office.