Skeletal remains discovered in Miramar Beach, Florida in October 2022 have been positively identified as Jacob Lyon, a 19–year–old from Niceville, Florida who went missing in late 2015. The Walton County Sheriff’s Office and Niceville Police Department announced the identification after DNA analysis performed by the Florida Department of Law Enforcement (FDLE) matched the remains to family reference samples obtained from Lyon’s family nearly a decade earlier. Lyon was last seen in late 2015 and officially reported missing by his mother on February 1, 2016, the same day he was entered into state and national missing person databases. DNA confirmation from FDLE came on January 21, 2026, bringing long-awaited news to the family. Investigators emphasized that while the identification provides partial closure, the case is now an active death investigation. Evidence found near the remains will undergo further analysis as part of continued investigative efforts.
