CdA police identify human remains found in pit

Human remains found in a Coeur d’Alene pit last summer have been identified as David Patrick Mcghee, according to the Coeur d’Alene Police Department.

The 47-year-old Spokane man was last seen in 2015. The circumstances surrounding his death remain a mystery.

Family members said Mcghee suffered from mental health issues and would often leave for weeks at a time without telling anyone.

When weeks turned to months, his family feared the worst.

“This was the worst-case scenario,” said Faith Gregory, Mcghee’s sister. “But it will help bring some closure to our family. There are so many unanswered questions.”

On Sept. 13, police said two children found bones, a skull and clothes while exploring a quarry on the property of Central Pre-Mix on West Kathleen Avenue.

The pit, located near a busy area of Coeur d’Alene, was described as “hundreds of feet deep” by police.

Police released a forensic sketch in January based on their findings. This week, Mcghee’s family was informed the remains are those of David Mcghee.

The case is under investigation.

Mcghee, who grew up in Tekoa before moving to Spokane as a teenager, was interviewed in a 2010 Spokesman-Review article about Veterans Day.

“My brother-in-law is in the military and I thank him every day for allowing everybody to safely walk down the street,” Mcghee said at the time. “God bless him for what he does.”

Gregory said Mcghee, a father of five, was a giving and caring man.

“He was a loving father, a son, a brother, the kind of man that would literally go hungry to feed a stranger,” she said.