Update: Local Authorities Investigate Remains Found In Mississippi River

SARTELL (WJON News) -- Human remains have been recovered from a vehicle submerged in the Mississippi River for decades.

Sartell Police Chief Brandon Silgjord says they believe they are connected to an unsolved 1967 case.

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The Stearns County Sheriff's Office says investigators were able to positively identify the car by its Vehicle Identification Number (VIN) as belonging to Roy Benn.

The Benton County Sheriff's Office has an open missing person's case on Benn after he disappeared in September 1967.

Based on the human remains, items found in the car, and the verification of the VIN number of the vehicle, the Sheriff's Offices believe the remains are Benn.

The case has been turned over to the Benton County Sheriff's Office for further investigation. WJON News Director Jim Maurice talks with Benton County Sheriff Troy Heck about the case.

Early Wednesday, a 1960s Buick sedan was pulled from the river near the 300 block of Riverside Avenue in Sartell.  The vehicle, intact be severely deteriorated, had been underwater for decades and was filled with river sediment.

Read More: Investigation Continues After Car Is Found In Mississippi River |

The vehicle's initial processing is being conducted by investigators from the Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension, Benton County Sheriff's Office, Stearns County Sheriff's Office, and Sartell Police Department.

The remains have been sent to the Midwest Medical Examiner's Office to determine the identity and cause of death.

The work to recover the vehicle included the Stearns/Benton Dive Team and Collins Brothers Towing, which raised the vehicle carefully to preserve its structure and potential evidence.

A unified command is overseeing the investigation.  Updates will be issued as new information becomes available.

Tri-County Crime Stoppers Open Missing Persons cases.

Your local historical society is a great place to preserve old artifacts and facts from our past, but sometimes they are called on to do a little detective work, too.

Read More: Benton Co. History: Tracking Down True 'History Mysteries' |