Remains found on a Washington beach in 2006 have now been identified as belonging to Clarence Edwin “Ed” Asher, a 72-year-old former mayor from Oregon who disappeared during a crabbing trip in the same year.
Asher went missing during his crabbing expedition in Tillamook Bay, Oregon, on September 5, 2006. He was declared legally dead after it was assumed he had drowned. His skeletal remains were discovered two months later on a beach in Taholah, a village located within the Quinault Indian Reservation in Grays Harbor County, Washington, approximately 185 miles north of Tillamook Bay.
The identification was officially announced on January 13, 2026, by the Grays Harbor County Coroner’s Office and the King County Medical Examiner’s Office. The result came after advanced DNA analysis was performed by Othram, a forensics lab based in Texas, specializing in genetic genealogy.
For almost two decades, the remains had been referred to as Grays Harbor County John Doe. The initial investigation had established that the remains belonged to an adult male about five feet nine inches tall, weighing around 170 to 180 pounds, and likely aged between 20 to 60 years.
The case was entered into the National Missing and Unidentified Persons System. However, investigators were unable to determine the man’s identity using traditional methods, as the remains were in an advanced state of decomposition when found.
In 2025, the Grays Harbor County Coroner’s Office collaborated with the King County Medical Examiner’s Office to submit forensic evidence to Othram in The Woodlands, Texas. Scientists created a comprehensive DNA profile using forensic-grade genome sequencing.
The team at Othram then used the DNA profile to conduct a genetic genealogy search, which provided new investigative leads to law enforcement. This enabled them to locate potential relatives of the unidentified man.
After contacting family members and obtaining reference DNA samples, a positive match was established between the samples and the DNA profile of the unidentified remains, confirming them as those of Asher.
Asher was born on April 2, 1934, in Salem, Oregon. He grew up in Astoria, Oregon, before moving to Fossil, Oregon, in 1952. He served as a lineman technician for the Fossil Telephone Company until his retirement in 1995.
In 1965, Asher started Asher’s Variety Store in Fossil, Oregon. He served as the town’s mayor and was a dedicated community servant, volunteering as a local fireman and ambulance driver, and serving on the ambulance and museum boards.
Asher’s wife informed the Coast Guard that her husband usually did not wear a life vest while crabbing and could not swim, leading investigators to believe he had drowned. The Coast Guard suspended its search after 11 hours, suspecting he fell overboard.
Asher’s wife, Helen, survived him by 12 years, passing away in 2018 at the age of 85. They had been married on March 15, 1986, in Condon, Oregon. Asher’s unexpected disappearance and assumed drowning left a significant impact on Helen.
Helen had been widowed once before in 1980 after 28 years of marriage to her first husband, Joseph Neys, whom she married in 1952.
At the time of his death, Asher left behind a large blended family, including his wife, three children, two stepsons, 21 grandchildren, and six great-grandchildren. His interests spanned from his family, antique cars, fishing, boating, hunting, black Labrador retrievers, cooking, to recreational vehicle travel.
The funding for the forensic genealogy testing was provided by Washington Governor Bob Ferguson, Attorney General Nick Brown, and the Washington State Legislature.
This marks the 43rd successful identification in Washington through technology developed by Othram. The identification of Asher’s remains after 19 years highlights the importance of preserving forensic evidence in cold cases, even when initial investigations yield no results.