POWER COUNTY, Idaho (KIFI) — After a three-year investigation, law enforcement officials in Power County, in partnership with the Idaho State Police (ISP) and multiple other state, local, and federal agencies, have successfully identified human remains discovered in the Fort Hall River bottoms as those of Lesiah Olivia Pickett of Spokane, Washington, a woman last seen in 2019.
Discovery and Initial Investigation
The investigation began on July 30, 2022, when a fisherman discovered a human skull along the Fort Hall River in Power County. The following day, investigators from the Fort Hall Police Department, the FBI’s Pocatello Office, and the Power County Coroner’s Office responded to the scene. Despite a thorough search, no additional remains or signs of trauma were found at that time.
Police say the skull was then transferred to the Ada County Coroner’s Office for examination and later submitted to the FBI Lab for DNA and anthropological analysis.
Breakthrough in the Investigation
The case remained cold until the ISP Sexual Assault Kit Initiative (SAKI) Team, a specialized working group within the ISP Forensic Services Division, contacted the Power County Sheriff’s Office (PCSO) and offered assistance in identifying the remains.
In May 2025, the skull’s information was entered into the National Missing and Unidentified Persons System (NamUs), and a bulletin was distributed to law enforcement agencies across surrounding states. Through coordination between ISP SAKI, NamUs, and forensic odontologists (dental experts), investigators identified two possible matches. Police say one was ruled out by DNA comparison, while the second was confirmed through a comparison of dental records within the NamUs database…