Edgar Latulip was reported missing in 1986 but recently began having memory flashes that made him believe he was living under the wrong name

This article is more than 4 years old

This article is more than 4 years old

A Canadian man who disappeared three decades ago and was believed dead will be reunited with his family after recovering some of his memory, police said Friday.

Edgar Latulip was reported missing in 1986 from the Waterloo region of Ontario and suffered a head injury. Constable Phil Gavin said Latulip went on to live in the Niagara region for the next 30 years, but recently began having memory flashes that made him believe he was living under the wrong name.

Latulip shared his concerns with a social worker, who Googled his name and discovered that he was the subject of a longstanding missing person’s investigation.

Gavin said the 50-year-old Latulip’s identity has been confirmed through a DNA test, and police are preparing to help him make contact with his surviving relatives.

“I don’t think anyone that I’ve spoken to has heard of a case like this, other than a story made for TV,” Gavin said.

According to a profile in the Waterloo Region Record newspaper, Latulip was living in a group home at the time of his disappearance. The profile said he was developmentally delayed and functioned at the cognitive level of a child.

The mystery surrounding his disappearance took its toll on Latulip’s mother, according to the profile.

“This is always at the back of my mind. Having an answer would mean closure,” Silvia Wilson told the Record.

Gavin said it was not known how or when Latulip received his head injury, nor when his memory began to return.

Gavin said Latulip has much to process.

“There’s nerves,” he said. “You haven’t seen your family members in all these years, and now a reunification process. I think it’s a lot to take in.”