Human Interest ‘Badly Decomposed’ Human Remains Found Over 3 Decades Ago Identified as Man Who Went Missing in Niagara Falls Authorities have announced that the remains belonged to Vincent C. Stack of Buffalo, N.Y., who disappeared in late 1990 By Abigail Adams Abigail Adams Abigail Adams is a Human Interest Writer and Reporter for PEOPLE. She has been working in journalism for seven years. People Editorial Guidelines Published on April 4, 2024 01:14PM EDT Close Vincent C. Stack, whose remains were found off the shore of Lake Ontario in 1992. Photo: NamUs Police in New York have identified a set of human remains that were found on the shore of Lake Ontario in 1992The Oswego County Sheriff's Office said the remains belonged to Vincent C. Stack of Buffalo, N.Y., who disappeared around Dec. 4, 1990Stack's remains traveled about 15 miles to the mouth of the river and more than 130 miles across Lake Ontario before reaching shore, according to the OCSO Human remains found off the shore of Lake Ontario in 1992 have finally been identified. The Oswego County Sheriff's Office announced on April 2 that remains found in 1992 near what is now the Novelis Plant belonged to Vincent C. Stack of Buffalo, N.Y., who vanished around Dec. 4, 1990. The medical examiner’s office said the individual appeared to have died between six months and five years before his body was discovered, according to the OCSO. Stack was 40 years old when he went missing at Niagara Falls State Park 34 years ago, according to the National Missing and Unidentified Persons System (NamUS) database. A Complete Timeline of Missing Student Riley Strain's Disappearance Stack is "believed to have gone over" Niagara Falls, according to the OCSO. His remains traveled about 15 miles to the mouth of the river and more than 130 miles across Lake Ontario before reaching shore. Never miss a story — sign up for PEOPLE's free daily newsletter to stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer, from celebrity news to compelling human interest stories. Authorities have not released an official cause or manner of Stack's death. The OCSO said it has notified Stack’s family of the identification. Human Remains Discovered Near Where Missing Louisiana Woman’s Car Was Found in 2022 Initial efforts to identify the remains, which were “badly decomposed and mostly skeletal,” were unsuccessful. But attempts to identify the remains resumed in April 2022 and a new DNA sample was taken. In February 2024, the sample “was found to be a familial match to DNA collected from” Stack’s family members. The OSCO thanked NamUS Regional Program Specialist Brian Nisbet and Detective Constable Sara Mummery of the Niagara Regional Police Service in Ontario for their assistance with the case. Missing California Teen Found Safe After Officials Issue State’s First Ebony Alert: 'A Real Difference' Mummery joined the case in 2022 and helped obtain the new DNA sample that led to Stack’s identification, according to the sheriff’s office. Both Mummery and Nisbet “were a driving force in bringing closure in this case,” the OSCO added. The OCSO hopes for a similar outcome in an unidentified remains case from 1983, which the department is “actively” investigating.