Remains of woman missing since 2016 found in Washington state

The remains of a Washington state woman who was missing for years was found near Snohomish in May this year, King County sheriff's officials said Thursday.

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The remains have been identified as Jamie Haggard.

Haggard was reported missing in June 2016.

Officials said the remains were found near Downes Road and Fales Road on May 9. Deputies said a crew cleaning up roadside litter found the remains near a suitcase and blanket.

KIRO-TV's Deedee Sun learned from the King County Sheriff's Office on Friday that a crew picking up trash along SR522 found Haggard's body inside a suitcase but almost missed the crucial discovery.

“A road crew found it; it was on the side of a road. And they put the suitcase up to get it picked up by a dump truck. Just prior to the dump truck picking it up, they opened it, and that’s when they found remains inside,” said Sgt. Ryan Abbot, with the King County Sheriff’s Office.

Her cause of death was homicidal violence, authorities said.

Search crews combed the area near where her body was found looking for more evidence that could lead to Haggard’s killer.

"This is a horrible case, very tragic. She had two daughters, a family that cares a lot about her. So this is heartbreaking. To get a little bit of closure, to find at least her remains – but we still have a lot of work to do because we still have to find out who is responsible for this,” Abbott said.