Timeline of recently located bodies
Photo by CHANSE WATSON A search and rescue helicopter continues its search down the river toward Cataldo.
With several human bodies/remains being discovered in such a short time, it may be confusing to keep track of who is who and what is what. To help keep the facts straight, here is a brief recounting of this most recent saga:
- April 28, 2018: Lionel Harding-Thomas, 69, is reported missing at 6:30 a.m. from the Elizabeth Park area. This triggers a two-day, multi-agency search and rescue operation that yields no results. It is suspected Harding-Thomas was carried off by the Coeur d’Alene River.
- May 25, 2018: Shannan B. Souza, 60, of Kellogg, is reported missing at 1:30 p.m. when a friend notices her vehicle abandoned at the Smelterville Airport. Only Souza’s dog and cane are found by deputies, both near the bank of the Coeur d’Alene River. Information of Souza’s disappearance is not made public due to difficulties notifying next of kin.
- May 25, 2018: Cole A. Lifsey, 23, of Post Falls, reports seeing a body floating in the Coeur d’Alene River at 1:56 p.m. near mile marker 1-2 while fishing. Another search and rescue operation is launched. Based on the description and location given by Lifsey, the body is not believed to be that of Thomas-Harding.
- May 26, 2018: Shoshone County Sheriff’s Office Undersheriff Holly Lindsey and Captain Jeremy Groves locate a human body approximately 1-2 miles east of the Cataldo boat launch. Although positive identification cannot be made on scene due to decay, the body is believed to be that of Harding-Thomas. The body is sent to the Kootenai County Coroner’s Office for an autopsy and official identification.
- May 29, 2018: The news of Souza’s disappearance is made public. An unofficial connection is drawn between her disappearance and the body seen by Lifsey on May 25.
- June 7, 2018: Work crews with DG&S Company report discovering human remains in a swampy area adjacent to the I-90 westbound off-ramp in Kingston around 8:30 a.m. Idaho State Police detectives and SCSO deputies process the scene and confirm that the remains are human, but do not belong to Souza.
- June 8, 2018: Following a more than 24-hour recovery effort that involved draining swamp land and building a dam to keep the area dry, the human remains discovered on June 7 are recovered by officials and sent to the medical examiner’s office in Spokane for an autopsy to be conducted.
- June 8, 2018: The Kootenai County Coroner’s Office confirms the body found on May 26 to be that of Harding-Thomas.
- June 9, 2018: A resident from Fast Hill in Kingston reports finding a human body at 7:45 p.m. With help from the resident, deputies are able to retrieve the body. Although positive identification is not made, SCSO confirms that this body’s description is consistent with the one given by Lifsey on May 25. The body is sent to the Kootenai County Coroner’s Office for an autopsy and official identification.
- June 11, 2018: The autopsy of the human remains found in Kingston on June 7 is completed, but results are not made public pending analysis from ISP detectives.
•June 11, 2018: The Kootenai County Coroner’s Office confirms the body found on June 9 to be that of Souza.