Missing person cold case solved after 25 years, says Connecticut State Police
A cold case for a missing Connecticut man has finally been solved after 25 years, Connecticut State Police said.
On April 9, 2001, 37-year-old Brian Canfield and 44-year-old Terry Brinegar were fishing together at Sumner Falls in Hartland, Vermont.
State police said the vessel overturned and both men were presumed drowned. Brinegar’s body was found on April 24 downstream at the Bellows Falls Dam.
But Canfield’s remains could not be found.
Over five years later, in October 2006, a human skull was found on the banks of the Connecticut River in Haddam. The Connecticut Office of the Chief Medical Examiner (OCME) initially investigated, but the remains were not tested for DNA at the time, according to officials.
Last summer, August 2025, OCME Investigator Michelle Clark notified the state police Central District Major Crimes unit that the skull had been processed for DNA. The results were analyzed by the Forensic Investigative Genetic Genealogy (FIGG), state police said, and the results showed that the remains could have been from Canfield.
Det. Michael Vance then found Canfield’s brother in Delaware, and DNA samples were taken. Early this May, test results confirmed that the remains belonged to Canfield.
State police thanked Vermont State Police and the OCME for their work on bringing the 25-year case to a close.
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