Human remains found in rural Jefferson County are those of Kelly Dwyer, so how did she die?
Kelly Dwyer
MILWAUKEE (WITI) -- The human remains found along a road in rural Jefferson County this past weekend have been positively identified as those of Kelly Dwyer. A forensic odontologist made the identification. Now, a new chapter begins: How did she die, and where? Will the evidence point to the man police have suspected since the beginning?
The remains were found by a citizen along Inlynd Rd. in the Town of Concord on Friday evening, May 1st. The Jefferson County Sheriff’s Office guarded the remains throughout the night until the State Crime Lab and other officials could process the scene come daylight Saturday morning. Since then, Jefferson County officials have been waiting for dental records to identify the remains.
Jefferson County Sheriff's officials said during a press conference Thursday evening there are mixed emotions. They are proud of their team of investigators, but heartbroken for the family of Kelly Dwyer.
"We offer our condolences to the family of Kelly Dwyer. It's definitely a mixed bag of emotions," Jeffrey Parker, chief deputy with the Jefferson County Sheriff's Office said.
Officials with the Jefferson County Sheriff's Office, the Jefferson County District Attorney's Office and the Milwaukee County Medical Examiner's Office have confirmed the remains are those of Kelly Dwyer. Dwyer has been missing since October of 2013.
"I can't even begin to put myself in (the Dwyer family's) shoes -- to even begin to understand what that family's going through," Parker said.
Milwaukee police say the investigation into the circumstances surrounding Dwyer's disappearance and the cause of her death remain under investigation by MPD and authorities in Jefferson County.
Kris Zocco
The last person seen with her, Kris Zocco, is behind bars at the Dodge Correctional Institution in Waupun for drug and child pornography convictions. He has never been charged in connection with Dwyer’s disappearance.
"The reality is, she is a young woman who went missing and now has been found deceased in Jefferson County and I can say that's certainly something that's suspicious in nature. We're going to continue to coordinate with those agencies in Milwaukee to try and bring the Dwyer family justice," Jefferson County District Attorney Susan Happ said.
"At the end of the day, I have a 24-year-old daughter and like I said, I can't imagine ever being faced with that reality that I'm not going to see her again. My heart goes out to that family and I pray they can move forward in this healing process," Parker said.
A forensic anthropologist will help to determine Dwyer's cause of death. There is no word on how long that could take.
But as the investigation moves forward, one of the most important answers might require investigators to look back. Since October 2013, a lot has happened in the search for Kelly Dwyer.
On October 13th, 2013: Kelly Dwyer's mother announced her daughter was missing.
"This is the most awful, horrible thing anyone could ever go through. I don't know where my baby is and I may never see her again," Dwyer's mother said.
It was soon learned that Dwyer had been last seen with Kris Zocco.
"The allegation is that, I believe the young woman`s last name is Dwyer, came to the defendant`s residence in an effort to use drugs," attorney Katryna Childs said.
Zocco is now in prison -- serving time for drug and child pornography convictions.
"The only situation that will satisfy us is when he`s in handcuffs for an association with Kelly`s disappearance," Dwyer's father Tony said in November 2013.
An inmate who served time with Zocco told FOX6 News in February 2014 he talked with Zocco about Kelly Dwyer. According to the inmate, Zocco said Dwyer would never be found -- and he talked about her in the past tense.
"He told me that he was being watched, you know, by law enforcement, very closely," the inmate said.
"He did something to Kelly. We want him to tell us about it. We want to know where Kelly is," Dwyer's mother said in January 2014.
Kris Zocco apartment building
In January 2014, video obtained from Zocco's phone by police who executed a search warrant showed Dwyer struggling to breathe -- in a sexual position.
Those search warrants also indicated police may have suspected Zocco in relation to "homicide or mutilating or hiding a corpse." The documents reveal a cadaver dog picked up on scents in the first-floor trash area at Zocco's East Side apartment building, and on a shovel inside that trash room. Additionally, when the dog was allowed to sniff on the 18th floor of the building, it went straight to Zocco's door.
Surveillance video from Zocco's apartment building shows Dwyer entering the building on October 10th, 2013. Dwyer and Zocco leave the building and re-enter twice — but Dwyer is never seen leaving again.
Monitor FOX6 News and FOX6Now.com for updates on this developing story.