In the winter of 1997, skeletal remains found about four-tenths of a mile up Gilson Gulch, north of Idaho Springs in Clear Creek County, Colorado, were identified as James Dean Alderton, a 47-year-old white male. Three men hunting for mountain lions discovered the remains on the morning of February 19 at about 11:30 a.m. The medical examiner determined Alderton’s death was a homicide, citing a gunshot wound among the skeletal evidence.

Despite that determination, the investigation produced no arrests and no suspects have been publicly named. The Clear Creek County Sheriff’s Office still lists the case as unsolved, and the motive and circumstances of Alderton’s final moments remain unknown.

If anyone knew James Dean Alderton or has information about his movements in Clear Creek County in early 1997, can you help investigators by coming forward?