The remains of a mother have been found six months after she mysteriously disappeared.
Local authorities in Missouri found and identified the skeletal remains of 33-year-old Emily Strite in a wooded area - six months after she initially went missing.
The Jefferson County Sheriff’s Office confirmed that the mom-of-four's remains had been discovered on September 28 in a statement published on Facebook.
"Sheriff Dave Marshak announces the discovery of the body of Emily Strite, a woman reported missing from Jefferson County, who was recently found deceased," the statement began.
"On September 28th, Deputies responded to a wooded area near the 4100 block of Frissell Road in De Soto for a report of human skeletal remains found by the property owner," it continued. "Through comparison to medical and dental records, investigators with the Regional Medical Examiner's Office determined the remains are those of Emily Strite."
After stating that Strite was reported as missing from the De Soto area, the authorities went on to say that they are unsure what the possible cause of death is at this time.
"At this time, Strite's cause of death is undetermined, and investigators are working to learn how her body ended up where it was found," the statement added before urging anyone with further information to come forward and aid in the investigation.
According to a previous missing persons report published on Facebook, Strite was last seen on the morning of April 12, wearing jeans and a hoodie as she was leaving a friend’s house on foot.
Her sister, Jess Strite, alleged to Fox2Now in June that Emily was "in and out of an abusive relationship for most of her adult life".
Additionally, her family says she disappeared as she was due to visit her three youngest children, who live with their father over the Missouri border in Cahokia, Illinois.
Strite's mother, Charlyn McCalin, said that she had spoken to her daughter on the morning she was last seen. "We only talked for about a minute, and she said, ‘I’m going to go see my kids,'" McCalin said of their last conversation.
Strite had reportedly been staying with a friend about 30 minutes from her mom's house, McCalin said.
According to Charlyn, whenever Strite saw her three children, their father - Steve Fults - would either pick her up or send someone else to collect her. "That was pretty routine," Charlyn told Dateline. "So my assumption was, 'Well, she’s at Steve’s now, and she’s staying there.'"
However, the mother grew increasingly concerned after she received a call from Steve asking her why she hadn't contacted her to fulfill plans to see their kids.
"Steve called me and said to me, ‘Have you heard from your daughter? It’s been, like, over a week now, and I haven’t seen or heard from your daughter,’” McClain told NBC News at the time. "He has never called me and questioned anything about Emily or to tell me anything about Emily."
“That’s why I panicked when he called me because he had never done that before," she added.
Fults told Dateline that his relationship with Emily ended in 2022, and their pair were now only connected by their children. He also described Emily as a "strong courageous woman and a great mom".
Police have said there is no evidence of foul play or a crime committed in either Strite’s disappearance or death, leaving the case with no suspects or persons of interest, the outlet reported, but there is an investigation into the matter in progress.
Anyone with information is asked to call the Jefferson County Sheriff’s Office Detective Bureau at 636-797-5515.
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