CAPE CORAL, Fla. (CBS12) — A mystery is taking a major turn after authorities confirmed human remains found in a Cape Coral canal belong to a woman who vanished in 1985.
Cape Coral police say the skull discovered by a teenager while kayaking in 2024 belongs to Rose Gayhart, who disappeared without a trace.
Gayhart’s case went cold for years before Crime Stoppers reopened the investigation in 2013, uncovering new details about her personal life and possible leads.
“Is it possible that she went off the grid? It’s possible. Is it possible she died? Yes,” Matt Walsh, a former special agent with the Florida Department of Law Enforcement, told Gulf Coast News.
Investigators previously learned Gayhart may have been dealing with domestic issues and was possibly pregnant when she disappeared. Two witnesses also reported seeing her with a white man in a red pickup truck.
Authorities say they learned two months ago the remains belonged to Gayhart.
Last week, Cape Coral police searched the area where the skull was found, looking for additional evidence and possibly more remains.
“It doesn’t make me feel better because it is not solved yet, but I would definitely like to get this person behind bars,” said Cape Coral resident Ashley LaRosa. “Get justice for her and her family.”
Police say the Livingston County Sheriff’s Office in New York helped secure the DNA used to identify Gayhart’s remains.
The case is now being investigated as an open homicide as detectives continue searching for answers.