The Tangipahoa Parish Sheriff’s Office has identified the human remains of a man who was reported missing in the Ponchatoula area in September.
The human remains were identified as James Wood, 43.
The case has been reclassified as a homicide. The official matter of death is still undetermined; there is evidence of a gunshot wound among the remains.
According to TPSO, Wood was last seen on surveillance video at the La 22 Mart on the corner of Highway 22 and Lee’s Landing in Ponchatoula on Thursday, June 19.
Relatives reported last speaking to him on Saturday, June 21 , and he was officially reported missing on June 25th.
His car, keys, and belongings were found at his home in the 40000 block of River Road in Ponchatoula.
Human remains were found in a wooded area near Wood’s address on September 12.
Since that time, the remains have been under analysis by the Louisiana State Police Crime Lab and the specialized FACES lab in an effort to identify the remains.
DNA testing concluded and confirmed that the remains are Wood.
Anyone with information about this case is asked to contact our Investigations Division at 985-902-2088. If you’d prefer to share information anonymously, you can do so through Crime Stoppers of Tangipahoa’s tip line at 1-800-554-5245 or visit www.tangicrimestoppers.com and click on the P3 Tips icon or Submit A Tip!
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