Paige Johnson missing Covington, Kentucky single mom remains found in Ohio ten years after reported missing. Is Jacob Bumpass a suspect?
The remains of a teen Kentucky mother who was reported missing in 2010 were discovered over the weekend in Ohio, according to officials.
The Covington Police Department in a news release on Wednesday said that the remains of 17-year-old Paige Johnson were discovered in Clermont County, Ohio.
‘Obviously, this was not the outcome any of us wanted,’ Covington Police Chief Robert Nader told during a press conference.
Nader said that the remains were found Sunday near Williamsburg Township less than an hour from Johnson’s family’s Kentucky home.
A woman called 911 and reported that her husband was out deer hunting and found a burned human skull the Daily Beast reports.
‘At this point, there is no cause of death,’ Nader told reporters.
Johnson, the mother of a then-2-year-old daughter, was last seen on Sept. 23. 2010, when her friend Jacob Bumpass said he dropped her off at the intersection of 15th and Scott streets in Covington, Ky.
The pair had earlier that evening attended a party.
Her remains were discovered about 33 miles east of where she was last reported.
‘Paige Johnson is coming home. It’s monumental,’ Kenton County Commonwealth Attorney Rob Sanders told FOX19. ‘We’re just so glad her family will have some closure.’
More questions than answers:
Family members said they were notified Tuesday that her remains were discovered.
‘I am, like, shaking,’ Brittany Haywood, Paige’s sister, told The Enquirer. ‘My mom just woke me up with this right now.’
Told Paige’s mother, Donna Johnson, ‘I was worried I would go to my grave without ever getting this day.’
Adding, ‘While it is such a sad day it is also a good day too.’
Of note, the last words that Haywood would read from the missing teen would be: ‘GIRL. I need To Talk To You IMMEDIATELY!’
In the years since Johnson was reported missing, local officials said they have been determined to recover her and bring a resolution to her family.
‘The trail goes hot and cold, but we are always on the case. We’ll never give up till her family has closure and justice is served,’ Sanders told FOX19 last year.
Authorities planned to review the case this year to examine new leads and look into new technology to test evidence.
‘It’s an emotional case for us,’ Sanders reiterated.
Is Jacob Bumpass a suspect?
After the 17-year-old was reported missing, police questioned Bumpass, who claimed he dropped her off in Covington. Police said his cell phone pinged off of a tower near East Fork Lake on the evening of Paige’s disappearance.
Investigators said Paige’s remains were found about 1 1/2 miles from that tower.
During questioning, Bumpass claimed he was fishing in Clermont County that morning.
Bumpass was never named as a suspect and never arrested for anything in relation to Johnson’s disappearance.
Of note, a 2010 report told of Jacob Bumpass, the man who was last seen with Johnson violating his parole after admitting to giving Paige alcohol the night she disappeared. The nature of Johnson’s and Bumpass’ relationship wasn’t immediately clear.
The Covington Police Department said that in conjunction with the Clermont County Sheriff’s Office, it is continuing its investigation.
Unclear is how Paige’s remains ended up in the woods after purportedly having been dropped off in Covington, KY on the night of her disappearance and what led to her presumed murder.
Paige’s daughter will turn 12 soon.
Anyone with information about Johnson’s disappearance is asked to contact Greater Cincinnati Crime Stoppers at 513-352-3040.
