Susan Powell, Missing Utah Mother, Still a Mystery; Wyoming Remains Not a Match
SEATTLE (CBS/KIRO) When Susan Powell's family received word that police had found remains in a Wyoming field that might be those of the missing Utah mother, they prepped themselves for another ride on what has been an emotional roller coaster.
PICTURES: Missing Utah Mother Susan Powell
However, police have since determined that the remains are not the 28-year-old woman, and were forced to tell her loved ones, yet again, that Powell's disappearance remains a mystery.
It was the seventh time since she went missing that authorities had informed relatives they'd found remains that could be Powell's, only to determine that was not the case, according to CBS affiliate KIRO.
The Deseret News reported Thursday, Sept. 9 that a sheepherder had discovered a body 14 miles east of Laramie, Wyoming.
Because there were some characteristics that resembled Powell, police began to look into the possibility that the remains could belong to the woman who's family live in Puyallup, Wash., and who has been missing since last December.
However, the local sheriff's office told the Salt Lake City newspaper that the body was between 30 and 40-years-old, was between 5-foot-2 and 5-foot-3, and had light brown hair - which doesn't quite match Powell's 5-foot-4 frame and darker brown hair.
Shelby Gifford, a spokeswoman for Powell's family, told KIRO that the whole ordeal has been "heartbreaking...every minute is a challenge."
Powell was reported missing Dec. 7, 2009 after she failed to show up for her job and her two sons, ages 2 and 4, did not make it to day care.
Josh Powell, Susan's husband, has told police that he saw his wife that day before he took the boys on a camping trip and left her home, says KIRO.
He remains tight-lipped with investigators and has been named a person of interest in her disappearance.