The YCSO and CCSO Medical Examiners are working together to identify remains believed to be missing Sedona hiker Thomas Lang

Sedona AZ (December 2, 2014) – Searchers believe they have located the skeletal remains of Thomas Lang, 22, originally reported as an overdue hiker on December 18, 2013. Since his formal search was suspended eleven months ago, Lang’s parents returned most weekends to hike areas they believed Thomas might have traveled. On Saturday, November 29, 2014, Thomas’s parents were searching in an area of Secret Canyon when his mother called the Coconino County Sheriff’s Search and Rescue advising they had found a jacket and shoes, quite possibly those of their son.

As the location of the clothing was in Yavapai County, YCSO units along with Coconino County Sheriff’s Office Search and Rescue coordinated a further search effort. The Arizona Department of Public Safety launched one of its Air Rescue helicopters with a Coconino County Sheriff’s Search and Rescue volunteer on-board to conduct overflights of the area where the items were located. During the flight, two additional items consistent with those Lang was believed to have taken on the backpacking trip were spotted from the air. On Sunday morning, a multi-agency intensive ground search commenced.

Agencies that assisted with the search included Coconino County Sheriff’s Search and Rescue Unit, Yavapai County Sheriff’s Search and Rescue Team, Yavapai County Sheriff’s helicopter, and Thomas Lang’s parents. At approximately 10:00 a.m. Sunday, the Yavapai Sheriff’s helicopter crew confirmed items spotted the previous day were a backpack, tarp, and a guitar.

Search and rescue units follow tip of missing hiker Lang’s parents and discover human remains yet to be identified

Teams from Coconino County Sheriff’s Search and Rescue including two search dogs and Yavapai Sheriff’s Search and Rescue hiked in very rough and steep terrain, reaching the items spotted from the air at approximately noon. At 12:45 p.m. on Sunday, November 30, 2014, the teams located what is believed to be the remains of Thomas Lang. The remains have not been positively identified and were released to the Yavapai County Medical Examiner. The Yavapai County and Coconino County Medical Examiners are working together in an effort to identify the remains and to determine the cause and manner of death.

The initial search was started after Lang’s father dropped him off at the Manzanita Campground on December 18, 2013, at about 11:00 a.m. It was Lang’s intention to hike and return on December 22, 2013. When Lang did not return, his family members called the Coconino County Sheriff’s Office and reported him as a missing person. It was at this point that a multi-agency intensive ground and air search began.

Agencies and resources involved with the initial search efforts in 2013 included the Yavapai County Sheriff’s Office (YCSO), the YCSO Search and Rescue Unit, the YCSO helicopter, the Coconino County Sheriff’s Office (CCSO), the CCSO Search and Rescue Unit, Lang’s parents, the Civil Air Patrol, the Maricopa County Search and Rescue Unit, the Mojave County Sheriff’s Search and Rescue Team, and the Arizona Department of Public Safety Air Rescue Unit. The formal search was suspended on December 27, 2013, after an extensive five day search.

In addition to the initial search effort, the Civil Air Patrol flew over the search area taking photographs utilizing a high resolution camera in April 2014. On several different dates, hikers reported seeing items they thought might belong to Lang. In response to these reports, the YCSO helicopter flew multiple missions. Until the recent discovery of items by Lang’s mother, all of the previously reported items were determined not to be his.

It is a common practice for agencies to conduct training missions in areas with outstanding missing persons cases. Throughout 2014, with the dual purpose of training its units and possibly uncovering more clues about Lang’s disappearance, both the YCSO and the CCSO Search and Rescue teams conducted numerous training missions in the area where the human remains were found.

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