Remains found on a secluded farm road in northern White County on December 28, 2001, were unidentified for years until a May 2014 medical examiner’s notification tied them to Robert Simmons, a 23-year-old African-American man from Augusta. The scene was treated as a homicide from the start, but skeletal remains and limited forensic anchors left investigators with a very uncertain timeline. Early anthropology noted the death likely occurred at least 12 to 18 months before discovery and described features consistent with a male while not definitively ruling out female; analysts also cited characteristics suggesting African or Indian ancestry.

After repeated DNA and dental comparisons against regional missing-person profiles, the identification finally gave the family a name but not answers. Simmons’ burial record lists a 1978 birth and a 2001 death; investigators continue to classify the case as a murder and have not announced arrests or named suspects. If anyone has information about activities on northern White County’s back roads around that time, please share what is known with the sheriff’s office.