The remains of David Koenig, an amateur Mixed Martial Arts fighter, were found in Missouri two years after he went missing.
A missing person investigation into Koenig has been open since March 2020 and led to search efforts on properties in Missouri’s Taney and Stone counties, and in Boone County, Arkansas, police said.
“Our department and the amazing group of volunteers never stopped in our efforts to find Mr. Koenig,” Branson Police Chief Jeff Matthews said in apress release. “While this is not the ending we hoped for, we offer our sincere condolences to the family and friends of Mr. Koenig.”
Koenig’s mother, Tracy Koenig, addressedthe findings on social media.
“It is with great and utter sadness, I am regretfully confirming that David has been found,” she wrote in a post to Facebook. “He was not shot, stabbed, no broken bones of any sort. He wasn’t robbed, as his tattered wallet was still [intact] as well as the two silver necklaces he always wor [sic] amongst some other things.”
“Big Dave is finally at peace,” she added, in part.
According toNBC News, Tracy previously said she believed Koenig was in distress before his disappearance.
“He’s just not someone who would disappear. And he’s not a guy that someone could just take down,” she added. “He’s a force to be reckoned with. He’s a big, strong guy — but also with a big personality and big heart. He would do anything to protect his family.”
Koenig had been staying at an inn in Branson a few days before he was reported missing, the outlet said.
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In an interview withKY3, Branson Police Department Assistant Chief Eric Schmitt said Koenig’s family played an integral part in their search efforts.
“They had an immense amount of patience with us, very supportive and it helped continue to funnel leads to us,” Schmitt told the news station.
“Remember the good times,” he continued. “There is a very good person that we learned about. We learned about all the neat things that Dave was able to do with both his father and his mother. That’s what, in my opinion, people need to dwell on.”
source: people.com
