NEED TO KNOW
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John Paul Fernandez, a Seton Hall University student, went missing in New Jersey in December 2015
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Nearly nine years later, in November 2024, human remains were found near a bike trail
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On Nov. 1, 2025, John Paul’s mother, Ninia Fernandez, shared on Facebook that DNA testing had confirmed that the remains were those of her missing son
A grieving mother said her family finally has “closure” after officials confirmed that human remains found last year belong to her son, who had been missing for nearly a decade.
John Paul Fernandez went missing from his Middletown, N.J., home on Dec. 13, 2015. According to a missing person poster released by the Monmouth County Prosecutor’s Office, he was 23 when he was last seen at Natco Lake on Route 36 South in Hazlet, N.J.
Nearly nine years later, on Nov. 4, 2024, investigators from the prosecutor’s office’s Major Crimes Bureau and the Middletown Police Department responded to reports of the discovery of human remains in the area of Willow Street in Middletown, per a statement from the prosecutor’s office sent to PEOPLE. The dead-end residential street runs parallel to the Henry Hudson Bike Trail, per Asbury Park Press.
At the time, officials said there did not “appear to be anything suspicious in nature,” according to the statement from the prosecutor’s office.
Monmouth County Prosecutor’s Office
Missing poster released following John Paul Fernandez’s disappearance in 2015
In a Facebook post on Nov. 1, 2025, John Paul’s mother, Ninia Fernandez, shared that DNA testing had confirmed that the remains were those of her missing son. The prosecutor’s office confirmed to PEOPLE that members of the Middletown Police Department informed Ninia 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,” Ninia wrote on Facebook. “While this brings heartbreaking closure, it also brings peace to finally bring our son home.”
She went on to share memories of her late son, saying he had “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 wrote.
Ninia told Filipino outlet GMA News Online that John Paul had been a senior at Seton Hall University, where he was majoring in accounting.
In her Facebook post, Ninia took a moment to thank “everyone who helped us look for JP, prayed with us, and never stopped hoping alongside our family.” She also acknowledged the “dedication and persistence” of the Middletown Police Department detectives, Monmouth County detectives and New Jersey State forensic team who helped “bring JP home.”
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Ninia shared that private services will be held for John Paul, followed by a celebration of life at a later date “where all who wish to honor his memory will be welcome.”
She concluded her post: “I miss my son so much — every single day. Thank you, from the depths of our hearts, for never forgetting him.”
Read the original article on People
