Local

Remains found in Federal Way that of man missing since 2005

FEDERAL WAY, Wash. — After 12 years of searching, people who loved a missing Federal Way man finally have some closure. On Saturday, church volunteers doing a cleanup on their Federal Way property found human remains.

The remains were identified Tuesday as belonging to Brian Barton, who disappeared in 2005.

Volunteers with Evergreen Bible Chapel found the remains among a mass of overgrown brush behind their church. Investigators said they don't believe foul play was involved.

“He just vanished. Nobody knew where he went,” said Barton's best friend, Jon Krebs.

Barton, a talented local musician--, disappeared March 10, 2005, in Federal Way.

Krebs, his wife Kimberly and friend Elizabeth Benavidez were devastated and directionless.

“There’s not a lot of resources for grown men who go missing, unfortunately,” said Kimberly Krebs.

They started a search, first with fliers.

“At the time, social media wasn’t a huge thing,” Kimberly Krebs said.

Barton’s story was featured on the show “Disappeared.” Then Krebs and Benavidez created “Vanished,” a Facebook page and Twitter account where they could share Barton’s story.

Soon other people started sharing stories of their own loved ones who were missing.

“I was amazed. There are hundreds of thousands of people that go missing every year-- we get reached out to on a global capacity,”

Krebs and Benavidez explained.

“I think there’s kind of a healing -- as hard as that can be -- to know that you’re not alone in that,” Benavidez continued.

Tuesday Barton’s story came to an end.

“It’s just, like, indescribable how awful it is and to have gone 12 years like, 12 years wondering, hoping, wishing, praying that he would show up,” said Kimberly Krebs.

Barton’s s legacy remains very much alive in the faces of the people who have not been found.

“We did gain something from a loss which is kind of cool,” Jon concluded.

His friends and family may never know what happened to Barton or how he ended up behind the church.

But his family in California can now have a proper funeral and memorial; there's a GoFundMe page set up to help with expenses.