PORT ANGELES — Human remains that washed ashore on the Olympic Peninsula in August 2008 have been identified through forensic testing, the Clallam County Sheriff’s Office said.
DNA analysis concluded the remains were Jeffrey Surtel, 17, whose family had reported him missing from their British Columbia home on April 29, 2007.
“Our hearts go out to Jeffrey’s family and friends, as they learn of this news,” said Inspector Ted Lewko, officer in charge of the Mission RCMP detachment, in a press release. “We hope that this update helps to bring them some closure to what has surely been an unimaginable 18 years of wondering what happened.
“Our sincere thanks to the Clallam County Sheriff’s Office for their perseverance in finding answers, and to the lab that was able to help link the DNA to Jeffrey’s family. Your efforts have made a real difference to those who knew and loved Jeffrey.”
Surtel’s family believed Jeffrey left the house on his bike while they were asleep at night but noted that he left most of his belongings at home. The disappearance was out of character for him, and Mission RCMP immediately began an investigation into his whereabouts.
A large contingent of family, friends and community members joined together with RCMP and Search and Rescue, and they searched nearby streets, forested areas and the Fraser River, according to the press release.
Numerous tips of possible sightings were received from various areas of the Lower Mainland and other parts of BC, but none were confirmed to have been Jeffrey, the press release said.
The Clallam County Sheriff’s Office investigated the case when the remains washed ashore on the Peninsula and conducted DNA analysis, comparing it with samples across multiple U.S. databases. No matches were found.
In 2024, the Sheriff’s Office raised enough funds through crowd-funding donations to send the DNA for testing earlier this year at a private laboratory in Texas. That lab used advances in forensic genetic genealogy to link the DNA to a member of Surtel’s extended family, the Sheriff’s Office said.
His family was notified last week, the Sheriff’s Office said.
“We would like to thank all the people who supported us over the years and were involved in the search for Jeff,” Surtel’s family said in a joint statement released by the Sheriff’s Office. “Special mention to Jeff’s classmates and teachers at Hatzic Secondary School that searched the Fraser River Heritage Park. Also, our thanks to the dozens of people that showed up for the grid search of the Mission area.”
Investigators on both sides of the border said there is no indication of criminality, although the circumstances surrounding Surtel’s disappearance and death remain unknown, according to the press release.
