Columbia police find human remains in city landfill

Columbia police said Wednesday that they found human remains in the city landfill that may belong to a woman who has been missing for 13 years.

Police Chief Geoff Jones said at a news conference that they could not confirm yet that the remains they found belong to Megan Shultz, who was reported missing in 2006. Jones said extensive DNA testing will be needed, and it is expected to be a lengthy process.

“The remains and evidence located with the remains are consistent with what we expected to find when looking for Megan,” Jones said.

Jones said the work has been emotionally and physically draining on the people searching the landfill.

Police also said they have been in constant communication with Shultz’s family.

Watch a live playback of the news conference below:

Shultz’ husband, Keith A. Comfort, walked into a police department in Lake Geneva, Wisconsin, last month and asked to talk to police about a mental health issue. Comfort then told an officer that he killed Shultz on Aug. 4, 2006, after she had “ripped someone off” in a drug deal, court documents said.

Comfort allegedly told police that he dumped Shultz’s body in a trash bin.

Police on Sept. 9 began what they called an exploratory dig in a 14-acre area of the city landfill, looking for items disposed of around the time Shultz went missing. Officials said last week that they were expanding the dig area.

Comfort was brought back to Boone County on Aug. 19 and remained in the Boone County Jail on Wednesday on a second-degree murder charge. His bond was set at $1 million.

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