On Saturday, a hunter walking in the area of the Garnet Dike boat launch (Upper Kings River area) found human remains and reported the discovery to the Fresno County Sheriff’s Office. Members of the Coroner’s Office responded and collected the body.
An examination confirmed it to be 65-year-old Hans Lamaack of Fresno, and a former resident of Madera. A cause of death has not been determined.
On Sept. 24, deputies and volunteers with the Fresno County Search and Rescue (SAR) Team began searching the wilderness for Hans Lamaack. He was last seen in the City of Fresno on Aug. 30, 2019. The Sheriff’s Office was made aware that he was missing on Sept. 24, when deputies found Lamaack’s car, a 2001 Volvo. It was parked near Garnet Dike Campground, which is located along the upper Kings River near Balch Camp.
Lamaack was found approximately three miles away from where his vehicle was parked.
At the end of August, family members reported Lamaack missing to the Fresno Police Department and the Madera Tribune. No leads were generated until the weekend of Sept. 20-21. On those dates, a bicyclist riding in a remote area of Trimmer Springs Road saw a Volvo parked with nobody around. The cyclist thought it seemed out of place and took down the license plate number. He later reported it to law enforcement.
Fresno Police discovered it matched a vehicle in a missing-person case. Fresno Police then asked the Fresno County Sheriff’s Office to check the area for the car, which deputies later found.
Anyone with additional information about Lamaack’s disappearance and why he died is asked to call the Sheriff’s Office at 600-3111.