Family members are devastated and left searching for answers after human remains were found near Moncton on Saturday.
New Brunswick RCMP say the human remains have been identified to be those of 27-year-old Adam Grant Howard, who has been missing since January 6, 2020.
Howard’s body remains were found in a wooded area in the Lakeville area near Weisner Road, approximately 10 minutes outside of Moncton.
Police say they have determined his death as suspicious.
READ MORE: New Brunswick RCMP identify remains as Adam Grant Howard, investigating death as suspicious
Sandra Slater, Howard’s mother, said the pair had a strong bond.
“He loved me and I loved him tremendously,” said Slater, from her Las Vegas home.
“He’s been robbed from me, he’s been stolen… Someone’s taken him away from me and that hurts.”
Despite the physical distance between the two, they continued to stay in touch.
“l just miss him so much,” said Slater.
“Things like, ‘Hey Momma, how ya’ doin’ Momma?’… I’m never going to get that again, I’m never going to hear his voice, I’m never going to get that hug again.”
She praised the RCMP for their work throughout their investigation and the compassion of investigating officers following her son’s disappearance.
Howard was kind, gentle and compassionate, she said.
After he went missing, Slater and other family members came to Moncton from the U.S., Ontario and P.E.I. to help search for him.
“Someone or multiple people know what happened,” she said. “They left my son face down in the dirt in January, left him laying there for animals to eat; they left my son like that.”
“I want someone to please come forward and tell the truth about what really happened.”
She said no family should ever have to experience a loss in the way they have.
But the devastation has been compounded by COVID-19, Slater said.