Police Discover Human Remains Believed to be Missing Derry, New Hampshire Man

An off-duty police officer hiking in a wooded area on Friday discovered human remains believed to those of a man who went missing nearly three months ago, according to Derry police.

The off-duty officer was hiking in a wooded area off Rockingham Road in Derry when he discovered the remains. Jack Walsh, a 63-year-old Derry resident with special needs, went missing back on Dec. 12, 2016 when he walked away from an appointment at Parkland Medical Center.

The Walsh family issued the following statement: 

"Earlier today a body was found in Derry NH off of Rockingham Rd (Rte 28). It is with heavy hearts that we disclose that it was, in fact, Jack. We thank you all for being supportive and overwhelmingly helpful for the last three months. As of right now we have limited information and will share with you upon any new findings."

Walsh’s family said they reported him missing to Derry police right away, but officials didn’t notify the public for another three days, and Walsh’s family said that was three days too late.

"We feel that if there had been some type of alert in those first 24 or 48 hours, it would have been very easy to locate him," Connolly said at the time.

There is no so-called "Silver Alert" in the state of New Hampshire. A Silver Alert, much like an Amber Alert, is a public notification system that prompts text messages, television interruptions, even reverse 911 calls when an adult with special needs is missing.

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