Family: Found body likely that of missing teen
MORTON, Wash. -- Searchers say a psychic helped them find what they believe is the body of a missing teenager from Morton.
There's no positive identification yet, but the family seems certain it's the body of 16-year-old Austin King.
The last time his family saw King, he was heading off to bed. That was a month ago.
Acting on a tip from a psychic on Wednesday, volunteer searchers headed up a logging road and made the discovery of a badly decomposed body.
King's uncle, Terry Minor, made the discovery, and he believes the body is that of his missing nephew.
"He's a good kid, and what happened to him should've never happened to him. And whoever did this need to be brought to justice," Minor said. "It's wrong."
Lewis County Sheriff Steve Mansfield says dental records are needed to make positive identification, but there are no other missing people matching the description of the victim.
"We're still working," said the sheriff. "We have a lot of leads to follow up on. We're getting a lot of input from people out there right now. So we're investigating this thing."
Once they make positive identification, investigators will be looking for suspects as they believe the victim's death was not accidental.
"It was heartbreaking," said volunteer searcher Leslie Mathews. "We didn't get to bring him home like we wanted, but we brought him home.
The search for King started shortly after he disappeared. The group Guardians of the Children joined in after seeing KOMO's news coverage on June 28.
The search base was set up at a park near the family's home...
The break in the case came when a psychic was called upon. She told the off-road search crews to head up a certain logging road and at a certain distance, his body would be found.
"She was right on," said Jennifer Mau of Guardians of the Children. "I always offer to the family, and I respect their wishes. If they don't want that, then I do not do that."
But Mau said King's family did grant her permission to lend the help of a psychic.
Now family members are determined to figure out what happened, who did it and why.
A vigil in King's honor has been set for Friday. It was to have been called "Bring Austin Home." But following the discovery of the body, the name has been changed to "In Memory of Austin."
There's no positive identification yet, but the family seems certain it's the body of 16-year-old Austin King.
The last time his family saw King, he was heading off to bed. That was a month ago.
Acting on a tip from a psychic on Wednesday, volunteer searchers headed up a logging road and made the discovery of a badly decomposed body.
King's uncle, Terry Minor, made the discovery, and he believes the body is that of his missing nephew.
"He's a good kid, and what happened to him should've never happened to him. And whoever did this need to be brought to justice," Minor said. "It's wrong."
Lewis County Sheriff Steve Mansfield says dental records are needed to make positive identification, but there are no other missing people matching the description of the victim.
"We're still working," said the sheriff. "We have a lot of leads to follow up on. We're getting a lot of input from people out there right now. So we're investigating this thing."
Once they make positive identification, investigators will be looking for suspects as they believe the victim's death was not accidental.
"It was heartbreaking," said volunteer searcher Leslie Mathews. "We didn't get to bring him home like we wanted, but we brought him home.
The search for King started shortly after he disappeared. The group Guardians of the Children joined in after seeing KOMO's news coverage on June 28.
The search base was set up at a park near the family's home...
The break in the case came when a psychic was called upon. She told the off-road search crews to head up a certain logging road and at a certain distance, his body would be found.
"She was right on," said Jennifer Mau of Guardians of the Children. "I always offer to the family, and I respect their wishes. If they don't want that, then I do not do that."
But Mau said King's family did grant her permission to lend the help of a psychic.
Now family members are determined to figure out what happened, who did it and why.
A vigil in King's honor has been set for Friday. It was to have been called "Bring Austin Home." But following the discovery of the body, the name has been changed to "In Memory of Austin."