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Human foot in shoe could date to 2013, coroner’s office says

The person whose foot and shoe were found Sunday on Botanical Beach likely died between 2013 and 2015, according to the B.C. Coroners Service.
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Botanical Beach near Port Renfrew

The person whose foot and shoe were found Sunday on Botanical Beach likely died between 2013 and 2015, according to the B.C. Coroners Service.

Matt Brown, the regional coroner, said Wednesday that the blue and black New Balance shoe was sold in North America starting in March 2013. Brown said that indicates the person died between that date and December 2015. “A preliminary exam shows the foot would have naturally separated from the body after a prolonged period in the water,” the coroner’s office said in a statement.

The size 12 men’s shoe was discovered amongst driftwood near Port Renfrew by a Duncan couple on Sunday. DNA testing will be carried out on the remains. The B.C. Coroners Service hires a laboratory to do the analysis.

First to be tested will be DNA on hand from relatives of missing people, Brown said. If a match is not found, U.S. officials will be notified, he said.

The foot was the 13th to wash up on B.C.’s coast since 2007, according to the coroners service. So far, 10 of the feet have been identified as belonging to seven people.

In each case, the death was accidental or a suicide, the service said.