Remains Found Near N.J. Bike Trail Identified as College Student Missing Since 2015

A mother says her family has finally found “closure” after authorities confirmed that human remains discovered last year belong to her son, who disappeared nearly a decade ago.

John Paul Fernandez vanished from his Middletown, N.J., home on Dec. 13, 2015. A missing person poster issued by the Monmouth County Prosecutor’s Office stated that he was 23 when he was last seen at Natco Lake on Route 36 South in Hazlet, N.J.

Almost nine years later, on Nov. 4, 2024, investigators from the Major Crimes Bureau and the Middletown Police Department responded to a report of human remains found near Willow Street in Middletown, according to a statement released by the prosecutor’s office. The dead-end street runs parallel to the Henry Hudson Bike Trail, as reported by Asbury Park Press.

At that time, officials said nothing about the discovery appeared suspicious.

In a Facebook post on Nov. 1, 2025, John Paul’s mother, Ninia Fernandez, announced that DNA results confirmed the remains were her son’s. According to the prosecutor’s office, Middletown Police Department officials informed her of the positive identification on Oct. 14.

“There are no words to describe the pain and the countless tears we have cried for him — every single day, for every year he was gone,” she wrote. “While this brings heartbreaking closure, it also brings peace to finally bring our son home.”

She also shared warm memories of John Paul, describing him as having “a gentle and giving heart.”

“He always stepped up when needed. He was quirky, funny, and full of life — the kind of person who could make anyone laugh with his animated stories and contagious energy. That was who he was: dependable, kind, and never afraid to be himself,” she added.

Ninia told Filipino outlet GMA News Online that her son had been a senior at Seton Hall University, pursuing a major in accounting.

She also thanked “everyone who helped us look for JP, prayed with us, and never stopped hoping alongside our family.” She expressed deep gratitude for the “dedication and persistence” of the Middletown Police Department detectives, Monmouth County investigators, and the New Jersey State forensic team who worked to “bring JP home.”

Ninia shared that private services will be held for her son, with a celebration of life to follow at a later date “where all who wish to honor his memory will be welcome.”

She ended her post with a heartfelt message: “I miss my son so much — every single day. Thank you, from the depths of our hearts, for never forgetting him.”