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John Daley ReportingPolice in Tooele County found the body of a missing man from West Valley City nine months after he was last seen.
Gary Neilson was reported missing last October and was presumed dead.
This case had been a mystery, and it touched off an intensive search last December. Searchers were unable to locate the 62-year-old then, but his body was found Friday by a hiker who was out rock hunting.
Family members reported Neilson missing from West Valley City October 10th. His pickup truck was found, also by a hiker, abandoned on December 6th, with his coat, hat and glasses located in the truck.
That triggered searches of a remote, rugged area near Lookout Pass, by the Tooele County Sheriff's department, West Valley police, volunteers, friends and family.
Norm Neilson/ Missing Man's Son/ Dec. 2005: "It's completely out of his character to just up and leave without letting somebody know or leaving a note, anything like that. It's totally out of his character."
Capt. Tom McLachlan/ West Valley City Police Dept./ Dec. 2005: "From what we know, he took no camping gear when he left. He just had normal, everyday clothes on for the weather."
Sheriff Frank Park/ Tooele County Sheriff's Office/ December 2005: "We looked Wednesday. We looked Thursday and today a large number of peole and dog teams are out searching. Searching for anything we can find. It's a tough place to search because of the vastness. We have done some very good grid searches where the pickup truck was found."
Sheriff Frank Park says the preliminary investigation indicates Neilson died from a self-inflicted gunshot wound.
In a press release, the Sheriff's Deparment notes that Lookout Pass is a popular recreation area and that Neilson's vehicle may have been seen earlier by people in the area but just not reported before the truck was found in Decmember.
