ST. GEORGE — Human remains have been found in an area near Duck Creek Ridge where two searches were conducted earlier this month for a woman missing from St. George, according to a Tuesday news release from the Kane County Sheriff’s Office.
An individual riding an all-terrain vehicle in an area near Duck Creek Ridge reported Monday to Kane County deputies about seeing clothing on the side of a road, the sheriff’s news release stated.
“The individual was familiar with the Townsend case and thought the clothing might be important,” Kane County Sheriff Lt. Alan Alldredge said.
Detectives and deputies responded to the area from Kanab and concluded during their investigation the presence of human remains with the clothing.
“The KCSO staff was joined by Kane County Search and Rescue members, including dogs trained in the location of human remains,” Alldredge said. “Additional remains were located in the area around the clothing. Evidence on scene leads investigators to believe the remains are those of Courtney Townsend.”
The clothing and other evidence were found near the area where a burned-out car was found six months ago, three days after it was reported stolen by family members.
“The vehicle Courtney was driving was located in Kane County on November 19 in the forest south of Duck Creek,” the media release said. “The vehicle appeared to be stuck on some rocks and had burned. The car was traced back to her mother who had reported the car stolen to the St. George Police Department on November 16, 2023.”
The car was reported stolen by Courtney Lynne Townsend’s mother, according to the probable cause statement for pending charges.
The Washington County Attorney’s Office filed the charges on April 23, but Townsend was never charged. Also reported stolen were two financial cards, the probable cause statement stated.
“She (the mother) was notified the cards at a Shell gas station and a Home Depot within the city of St. George,” according to the court document. “She did not have the actual address of the stores the cards were used at.”
Kane County Sheriff Tracy Glover previously told St. George News that search efforts for Townsend were hampered because of snowfall after the vehicle was found. A ground search was not possible until May 11, when sufficient snow had melted.
Townsend’s family also organized and carried out a search of the area on May 18 but also did not find any clues. Dallas Jimenez, Townsend’s sister, said many locals turned out to help search for her sister were Duck Creek residents.
“It was amazing. We had about 30 people show up and a lot of them were from Duck Creek,” she said. “Such an amazing little community with so many people willing to help with the search in any way they could.”
The Kane County Sheriff’s Office said their department is continuing the investigation pending a positive identification and possible cause of death of the remains found.
“The remains will be transferred to the custody of the Utah State Medical Examiner’s office for further investigation and identification,” Alldredge said. “The Kane County Sheriff’s Office, St. George Police Department and the Utah Medical Examiner’s Office are actively continuing the investigation.”
Last week, St. George Police Department Public Information Officer Tiffany Mitchell told St. George News that detectives in St. George are pursuing all leads.
“It is still an active investigation,” she said. “It looks like the focus right now is Kane County.”
This report is based on statements from court records, police or other responders and may not contain the full scope of findings.
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