Camdenton, MO, 07-05-22 - Over the weekend, detectives from the Camden County Sheriff's Office confirmed the identity of a deceased person found in Linn Creek last October. The deceased person has been positively identified as 62-year-old Gary Kaeter, of Licking, MO.

Kaeter was last seen alive on May 30, 2016, in Texas County, MO. The Missouri State Highway Patrol towed Kaeter's vehicle from State Road Y in Linn Creek in June of 2016. At that time, there was no evidence of Kaeter's whereabouts and no signs of suspicious activity in or near the vehicle. MSHP Troopers later returned to the area but found no additional evidence during their investigation.

In October of 2021, two local residents hunting for arrowheads in the area, observed what they thought to be human remains at the bottom of a steep ravine, under a rock crevice. Deputies and detectives responded to the scene and recovered skeletal human remains and tattered clothing.

Detectives later coordinated with members of the San Diego, California Police Department to collect a DNA sample from one of Kaeter's close family members. An independent forensics laboratory in Lorton, Virginia analyzed the DNA sample provided by the San Diego Police against a known sample taken from the skeletal remains recovered in Linn Creek. The results positively identify the remains as belonging to Gary Kaeter.

The Camden County Sheriff's Office would like to thank our partners at the MSHP, the San Diego Police Department, and the Texas County Sheriff's Office for their assistance in providing closure to the Kaeter family.