Arizona Law Enforcement Arrests Man With Bartlesville Connection In Human Remains Case

An investigation is underway in Arizona involving two men with connections to Bartlesville.

Daylan Thornton is in jail and the other man, Steven Brashear, is feared dead by his family members after mountain lions were found feeding on human remains.

Thornton's arrest affidavit from Arizona said he showed up to the Oro Valley Police Department last week to ask about a missing person's investigation. Pima County deputies said in the affidavit that Thornton showed up in the missing person's SUV. Thornton claims he was given the SUV.

Thornton is also a person of interest in the case of human remains found at the popular Pima Canyon Trail near Tucson, Arizona. Investigators said three mountain lions were found feeding on human remains.

Arizona Game and Fish Department officers killed the mountain lions after they were determined to be a danger to the public.

"We thought the risk was too great and we had to take action,” Mark Hart with the Arizona Game and Fish Department said.

The CBS affiliate in Tucson reports an autopsy shows the person was likely not killed by the mountain lions.

While investigators said the remains have not been identified yet, a Go Fund Me page raising money in Brashear's name says, "Need help paying expenses for my father’s death."

The Oro Valley Police Department said in early December Brashear was leaving Bartlesville to go to Arizona with another man in an SUV with Oklahoma temporary tags.

Police believed Brashear arrived in the Tucson area the next day, then was picked up in another vehicle and has not been seen or heard from since.

Thornton is in the Pima County Jail in Arizona after on a complaint of stealing Brashear's vehicle.

"I think people should understand that they need to have a little patience with this case and there's still a lot of pieces that we're investigating that multiple agencies are investigating,” Pima County Sheriff’s Department Deputy James Allerton said in a phone interview.  

Thornton’s arrest affidavit also said he “admitted to fleeing to California days after the disappearance.”

Investigators said Thornton came back to Tucson last week and does not have a permanent residence. Investigators said he was last living in Bartlesville.

The Bartlesville family declined to speak on camera, but said Brashear was "a really good guy."