Human remains in Parma identified as 29-year-old

The body found in a field in Parma has been identified by the Cuyahoga County Medical Examiner as 29-year-old Joseph T. Helser.

Parma police said they recovered nearly a full skeleton after two teens found human remains in a small field behind the Toys R Us store on Day Drive. The news came as officers took away a variety of items found at the scene in April.

“The remains were too decomposed to make any kind of preliminary identification as to age, gender or any other identifying characteristic," Lt. Kevin Riley said.

Parma police currently have five people missing in the city. In Cuyahoga County, according to the county's missing persons database, there are 214 missing persons.

Riley suspected the remains had been in the field for months.

EDITOR'S NOTE: The man identified was originally named Joseph Helser White. His name was corrected and changed to Joseph T. Helser.