Human remains found near Big Arm identified

BIG ARM — The remains discovered in late October have been identified as Lawrence Bufton, of Kalispell, Det. Mike Sargeant, of the Lake County Sheriff’s Office, said.

The cause of death is suicide.

Bufton’s mother lived in the same area where his remains were discovered, Sargeant said.

Bufton, who was last seen in August  2005, was born on Dec. 30, 1952 and Sargeant said they estimate his time of death somewhere near the date he disappeared.

Bufton, an enrolled member of the Salish Kootenai Tribe, was likely 52 years old at his time of death.

The Lake County Sheriff’s Office confirmed in late October that human remains were found in a wooded area near Big Arm.

Sargeant said at the time the remains were discovered around 3 p.m. on Oct. 22 and the LCSO responded and confirmed the findings were a human male.

We were fairly certain we knew the identity of the remains, Sargeant said, however we waited for a positive ID from dental records by the state crime lab to release that information.”

Sargeant also said that law enforcement hadn’t found anything that would indicate that a crime had been committed.

Representatives from the University of Montana archaeology department, the state crime lab and the Montana Highway Patrol assisted the LCSO with documenting and logging the scene.

Officials worked for nearly a month to determine the positive identity of the remains, visiting the scene several times to gather evidence.