Authorities find body near home of missing man Tyler Goodrich

LINCOLN, Neb. (KLKN) – The Lancaster County Sheriff’s Office on Saturday hosted a press conference to address a suspicious death in southwest Lincoln.

Chief Deputy Ben Houchin talked to the media at the corner of Highway 77 and West Pioneers Boulevard at 1 p.m.

The Lincoln Police Department got a call just before 9:45 a.m. from a person walking their dog saying they found remains of a body.

According to authorities, the male body was found in a wooded area on the northwest corner of Highway 77 and Pioneers Boulevard.

Houchin said the body had been there for over a year, but they couldn’t identify the body at this time.

“We are not identifying 100% who the individual is,” he said. “We still have investigation portions and the autopsy to go, at this point in time.”

Officials are determining this death as suspicious and not a homicide.

“We always work everything like it’s a possible homicide until we can prove that it’s not” Houchin said. “We, again, feel very confident it is not (a homicide), but we have our crime scene techs out here working the scene.”

Based off of details at the scene, including the location and proximity to Tyler Goodrich’s last known location, investigators have been in contact with Goodrich’s family, the sheriff’s office said in a press release.

The body was found about 967 yards from Tyler Goodrich’s home, according to authorities.

The sheriff’s office met with the Goodrich family this afternoon.

Lonnie Goodrich, Tyler’s father, told Channel 8 the news this morning was hard to hear.

“It hit me like a load of bricks, and now I just feel numb,” he said. “I told my wife before we came up here, ‘For 16 and a half months, we have begged for this moment, closure of some kind and now, if this is closure, our process has to be different, we’ll have to start all over. But this time, it will be a process of grief because we have answers.'”

Goodrich said if this is the end of their search for Tyler, he is most grateful for one thing.

“I appreciate people checking in with us and the love and support that we’ve had throughout this entire process,” he said. “I will never forget all of you that have reached out in one way or another and the kindness you’ve shown, the love you’ve given us.”

There will be an autopsy on Monday, and authorities will release more information at that time.

This is a developing story. Check back with Channel 8 for updates.