HAMPTON, Iowa – Human remains have been found in the car of a man missing since 2013.
The Franklin County Sheriff’s Office says the 2006 Volkswagen of Ethan Kazmerzak was located in a pond northwest of Hampton Monday. With the help of the Story County Sheriff's Office Dive Team, work to remove the vehicle from the water was completed around 1:30 pm Tuesday. Investigators found human remains in the vehicle.
Ethan Kazmerzak
Those remains have been sent to the Iowa Office of the State Medical Examiner in Ankeny for identification. Kazmerzak was last seen on September 15, 2013.
The Franklin County Sheriff’s Office says it wants to give a special “thank you” to the diligent efforts of the Adventures with Purpose crew that resulted in the discovery of Kazmerzak’s car.
Assisting at the scene of the recovery were the Hampton Police Department, the Iowa Division of Criminal Investigation, Franklin County Emergency Management, Butler County Emergency Management, Franklin General Ambulance, Hampton Fire Department, and the Franklin County Medical Examiner.
Previous story below
HAMPTON, Iowa – Law enforcement says it believes it has found the car belonging to a North Iowa man missing for over seven years.
Ethan Kazmerzak was reported missing on September 15, 2013. The Franklin County Sheriff’s Office says Kazmerzak was driving a silver 2006 Volkswagen Jetta TDI when he was last seen. A dive team on Monday found what is believed to be that Volkswagen submerged in a body of water northwest of Hampton.
The location is near one of the last places Kazmerzak was seen and the Sheriff’s Office says the body of water had been searched two times before. An effort to recover the Volkswagen from the water is underway.
The Franklin County Sheriff’s Office is asking that “proper space, respect, and consideration be shown to the Kazmerzak family and agencies involved in this continuing investigation.”
A $100,000 reward has been offered for any information that leads to finding Ethan Kazmerzak. Anyone with such information is asked to call North Iowa Crime Stoppers at 1-800-383-0088 or the Hampton Police Department at 1-641-456-2529.
