Human remains have been found at the Oregon home of Dennis Day, one of the original Disney Mouseketeers, who has been missing since last July.
“On Thursday, April 4, 2019, the Medford Assault and Death Investigation Unit (MADIU) was contacted by the Phoenix Police Department after human remains were discovered at 510 Pine Street in Phoenix, Oregon,” Captain Tim Fox, a spokesperson for the Oregon State Police, said in a statement to TheWrap on Saturday.
The statement continued: “Oregon State Police investigators were assigned to lead the death investigation and are being assisted by the Jackson County District Attorney’s Office, Jackson County Sheriff’s Office, Medford Police Department, and the Oregon State Police Forensics Lab. At this time, the human remains have not been identified and the investigation is ongoing.”
Day, 76, was cast as one of the original Mouseketeers in Disney’s “The Mickey Mouse Club” in 1955 at the age of 12. He stayed on the program for two seasons before exiting in 1957.
The former child star was reported missing last summer by his longtime partner Ernie Caswell, who suffers from dementia-related memory problems. He was last seen in his driveway, saying he was going to visit friends. His car was found along the Oregon coast with two people inside who had no connection to Day, but police say there were no signs of foul play, according to USA Today.
“Ernie was in the hospital at that time, and he realized Dennis hadn’t come to visit him in a few weeks,” Day’s sister Nelda Adkins told Dateline in February. “So he had someone from the hospital call the police and report Dennis as missing.”
“I keep the file on my desk all the time,” Lt. Jeff Price of the Phoenix Police Department told a local NBC affiliate in January, “…waiting for that one call to come in.”
“He’s not the type of person who would just disappear. Especially with his significant other being in the hospital — he was very dedicated to him,” Day’s niece Denise Norris told Dateline. “We are worried. [We] just need answers. We love him. We’re just kind of lost with what to do, or how to find him.”