On December 4, 1990, a 40-year-old man from Buffalo, New York, named Vincent C. Stack was last seen in Niagara Falls State Park. In the initial stages of the investigation into his disappearance, authorities believed it was likely that he had gone over Niagara Falls. This theory set the stage for a mystery that would span more than three decades, leaving his family with unanswered questions about his ultimate fate.
The circumstances of that day remained unclear, and with no immediate trace of him found, his case became a long-standing missing person investigation.
Over a year later, on April 8, 1992, human remains were discovered washed ashore on the coast of Lake Ontario, near what is now the Novelis Plant in Oswego, New York. The body was found in a small crevice on the shoreline, approximately 145 miles from where Stack was last seen. The remains were severely decomposed and mostly skeletal, making visual identification impossible. At the time, a medical examiner determined the individual had likely been deceased for a period ranging from six months to five years. Investigators in 1992 were unable to link the remains to any known missing persons cases. Years later, in 2008, a DNA profile was extracted from the remains and uploaded to the national DNA database, CODIS, but unfortunately, this effort did not generate any new leads, and the identity of the person found remained unknown.
For thirty years, the case grew cold, until April 2022, when the Oswego County Sheriff's Office decided to renew efforts to identify the remains. This initiative involved a crucial collaboration with Detective Constable Sara Mummery of the Niagara Regional Police Service in Ontario, Canada, to compare the case with others across the Lake Ontario area in both countries. A new DNA sample was obtained from the remains for further analysis. This renewed push finally brought a breakthrough. In February 2024, advanced DNA testing resulted in a familial match with genetic material provided by Vincent Stack's family. After 33 years of uncertainty, the family was notified in person that their loved one had been found. The investigation concluded that after going over the falls, Stack's remains traveled about 15 miles down the Niagara River, and then journeyed over 130 miles across the vast expanse of Lake Ontario before finally coming to rest on the shore near Oswego. The resolution of this decades-old case through international police cooperation and the advancement of DNA technology provided a long-awaited, albeit somber, closure for a family that had waited so long for answers.Last Seen: Dec 4, 1990
