Authorities have announced remains found are believed to be those of missing Ohio woman Sierah Joughin, who vanished while riding her bike Tuesday in Metamora, Ohio.
The remains were found around 6:00 p.m. Friday along County Road 7, not far from where the 20-year-old’s bicycle was discovered abandoned. James Dean Worley, 57, was arrested earlier this week on charges of abduction in relation to Sierah’s disappearance.
Fulton County authorities said at a press conference Saturday they expect new charges to be brought against him in connection with the case.
Police do not believe there was a prior connection between Sierah and Worley. Worley was convicted in 1990 of abducting a woman who was riding a bike in a case many online are calling eerily similar to Sierah’s.
That woman was able to escape, injured but alive. Worley served several years, before being released on parole in 1993, according to NBC affiliate WNWO.
Sierah, who was to enter her junior year at the University of Toledo this fall, was last seen Tuesday at 6:45 p.m. riding her bicycle with her boyfriend.
The pair split directions to head home, but Sierah never made it. She was reported missing that evening by her family.
Hundreds turned out to search the fields in the area, and thousands shared Sierah’s photo in the hope of finding her alive. A $100,000 reward had been offered from an anonymous donor for her safe return.
Anyone with information that could help investigators, especially anyone who may have seen something in the area of County Road 6 on Tuesday evening, should contact the Fulton County Sheriff’s Office at 419-335-4010 ext. 8 or the Attorney General’s Bureau of Criminal Investigation (BCI) at 1-855-BCI-OHIO (224-6446).
The investigation remains ongoing and is being conducted by the Fulton County Sheriff’s Office, along with BCI and the FBI. Several other state and local authorities have also assisted in the investigation.
