A human skull has been found linked to a man who went missing nearly 47 years ago after he was mauled by bear during a hiking trip.
Gary Frank Sotherden, from New York, and his friend had travelled to Arctic Circle, Alaska, US in the 1970s and visited the Porcupine River.
The pair decided to split up and pledged to meet back at the site, however, Mr Sotherden never returned and he was reported missing by friends and family.
Emergency services were sent out to look for Mr Sotherden via the water, air, and on foot but they were unable to locate him.
However, in 1997, a hiker found a human skull at the exact same river where the missing hiker was last seen.
Investigators were left unable to find any DNA from the skull until the case reopened in April last year thanks to the missing hikers brother.
Authorities believed the skull would have likely belonged to Mr Sotherden.
They reached out to his brother Stephen Sotherden at the end of December to try and test his DNA to confirm a match.
They said this could take up to a year but on Thursday the family received the news the skull was in fact his brother.
Stephen had searched for his brother for decades and was left stunned at the news after a 23andMe DNA test confirmed the match along with the probable cause of death.
“Based on the shape, size and locations of tooth penetrations to the skull, it appears the person was a victim of bear predation,” Tim DeSpain, an agency spokesperson, said.
His brother, at the time of the disappearance, had hired investigators and even a mountain guide to try and trace back his steps.
Stephen said: "'He did find my brother’s site. He found his broken glasses. He found identification."
His family gave up any hope of finding Mr Sotherden and believed he tragically due to a bear attack and the extreme conditions.
Their family added a tombstone in their cemetery which says: "'Lost in Alaska in the 1970s."
Stephen is now planning a memorial for his brother later this year after some of his remains were found.
He said: "It’s been hard all the way along, but it’s nice to at least know what happened."
