Utah Student Vanished in 1973. His Remains Have Been Found

"On October 12, 1973, Douglas Brick walked out of his dorm ... and vanished." That's how the University of Utah starts the tale of one of its most famous former students, a 23-year-old senior from Pocatello, Idaho, who seemingly disappeared into thin air more than five decades ago, per USA Today. Now, finally, some closure: Police officials say tests show that human remains found in Salt Lake City last year in the foothills near the school are those of Brick, a huge piece of the puzzle in this longtime cold case.

In 2022, Brick's older brother David told ABC4 that he was in Europe when his younger sibling vanished. "There was a lot of things going on," David Brick said at the time. "He had some girlfriend, and he broke up with the girlfriend. We really don't know why he just took off and disappeared." Although claims made on various online forums speculated that Douglas Brick had fled to start a new life, perhaps even in a different country, the trail leading to him went cold. "It seemed impossible that he could ever be found," the university says in its release—until 2022, when the university's police force hired a crime data analyst and Major Heather Sturzenegger agreed to reopen Brick's case.

Police managed to obtain a DNA swab from Brick's sister, which they held on file until the next breakthrough happened: the discovery in October of weathered skull fragments about 6 miles away from the university. The bone pieces were sent to a specialized out-of-state lab, and results came back in April: They were Brick's. "When I got the report, I lost my breath," Sturzenegger said. "My heart was pounding. I was shaking. I was thinking, 'Am I reading this right? Is this him?'" Brick's family was notified earlier this month of the confirmation.

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"We never stopped hoping for answers about Doug's disappearance," Brick's family says in a statement, per the school's release. "After 52 years, this result, while sad, is nothing short of a miracle." The investigation into his death continues, with police asking anyone with info to call 801-585-2677. More about the case here, including the wildly coincidental encounter Sturzenegger had with a local doctor that broke everything wide open—that doctor had been Brick's roommate when he went missing. (More cold cases stories.)