M54 human remains: Body identified as man missing from Oldbury for seven years
A man whose remains were discovered close to the M54 was named today as missing Oldbury man Surjit Takhar, who vanished in 2008.
Mr Takhar was 37 when he was reported missing from his home on October 8, 2008. He was last seen by his family on Monday 29th September 2008.
His remains were discovered by workers on August 20 last year at the bottom of an embankment, next to the slip road at Junction 4 of the M54 in Telford.
Today West Mercia Police revealed they had established a full DNA profile and identified Mr Takhar using that and dental records.
But the cause of his death remains a mystery, and police are treating it as unexplained.
DCI Neil Jamieson, who is currently leading the investigation, said "Our thoughts are with Surjit's family at this very difficult time.
"We are continuing to investigate his death, and now that we have a formal identification, we are pursuing other lines of enquiry to establish what has happened. We remain open minded as to how he died.
"At the time Surjit was reported missing West Midlands Police carried out a significant investigation in to his disappearance. As such we have been working closely with them to get an understanding of the enquiry, to try and piece together why and how he would end up at this inaccessible and unusual location.
"We would like to thank everyone who has assisted us with our enquiries so far, and we would urge anyone who knows anything about Surjit's disappearance in 2008, including how he may have travelled to Telford, to contact police."
Contact the West Mercia Major Investigation Room at Telford by calling 101.
Or Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111.
