LIVONIA, Mich. – While the Livonia Police Department is asking for the public’s help identifying a mummified body found partially submerged in a creek near Hines Drive and Levan Road, Pamela Sanford told Local 4 she’s worried it could be her missing husband.
Police have not confirmed the identity, and Local 4 is told it could take up to two weeks to know.
Recommended Videos
Police said the deceased appears to be an adult man and was wearing a black hooded sweatshirt, dark-colored jeans and black shoes. The body was found just after 6 p.m. on March 28.
Sanford, whose husband, James Sanford, 75 at the time, disappeared April 8, 2024, is gathering his belongings and turning over dental records as investigators work to identify the remains. James, who has dementia, left on foot without crucial medication. He disappeared about two miles from where the remains were located.
Livonia Police and other sources told Local 4 the remains are greatly decomposed and mummified, so a specialist needs to be brought in to identify the remains.
“We’re kind of in a holding pattern right now, unfortunately,” said Captain Eric Marcotte with the Livonia Police Department. “It’s in the medical examiner’s hands. We are trying to make this a priority.”
“You think you prepare yourself for it, but when it comes up -- it’s just a lot,” she said. And while there is no confirmation and there are details “that don’t fully match,” she said, “it tricks your mind.”
There are some things that are different, she said, like the body that was found was wearing jeans, “but James was wearing jogging pants.” Still, she said, “Hopefully it brings some kind of closure.”
James Sanford’s disappearance
Pam Sanford’s fear is rooted in a long and agonizing disappearance. James vanished the afternoon of April 8, 2024, after walking away from their Westland home. It was a day like any other, Pam said.
“He was walking out the back door, and I came out the front,” Pam told Local 4 at the time. “He was gone that fast.”
The couple had been preparing to leave for a doctor’s appointment when she said he became agitated as she helped with his coat.
“He got agitated because he didn’t want me to zip it up and then he’s like, ‘I’m going out the door,’ and I’m like, ‘Go ahead.’” She said. With his dementia, Pam said some days were better than others.
“During the day, he’s pretty much OK,” Pam said. “He’ll forget people’s names or he’ll look at you like, ‘I know you,’ but he can’t place where.”
The search for James Sanford stretched for months, involving air and ground efforts and a steady stream of tips. But the tips also brought scams.
“We would run around -- but it’s not him,” she said. Of one apparent scammer, she recalled: “The police said do not listen to it because this person has done it to four other people,” she said.
Even so, since his disappearance, she has continued checking hospitals and nursing homes -- hoping someone may have seen him, or even helped him without realizing he was missing.
Livonia police are asking anyone with information that could help identify the deceased to call the Livonia Police Department at 734-466-2340.
Anyone who recognizes James Sanford or believes they’ve seen him is asked to contact the Westland Police Department at 734-722-9600.