Authorities say genealogy is bringing them closer to identifying the remains of a man found in Lawrence County in 2000.

A press release from Lawrence County State's Attorney John Fitzgerald said authorities are working on the case with forensic genealogist Colleen Fitzpatrick, whose firm IdentiFinders helped solve a 51-year-old murder case in Rapid City earlier this year.

On February 19, 2000, the skeletal remains of an adult man covered by two wooden planks were found in a remote area in Lawrence County, four miles north of St. Onge.

An autopsy determined that the victim was a 20- to 25-year-old man killed by multiple gunshot wounds and that the murder had taken place between nine months and three years prior to the discovery of the body.

The release said that over the past year, higher-quality DNA samples from the victim have been compared with samples from genealogical databases, linking second, third and fourth cousins to the victim.

Additional tests are underway to determine closer links, the release said, with an eventual goal of identifying the victim — the first step in solving the murder.