They find the car and human remains of a student who disappeared 45 years ago in Georgia

(CNN) – Authorities searching for a Georgia college student who has been missing for more than 45 years received big news after his car was found in an Alabama creek, along with his wallet, identification card and suspected human remains.

Kyle Clinkscales, student at the Auburn University, was last seen on the night of January 27, 1976, as he left his hometown of LaGrange, Georgia, to return to campus in his 1974 Ford Pinto, according to Troup County, Georgia, Sheriff James Woodruff, at a press conference on Wednesday, the day after the discovery.

The 22-year-old never made it to the Alabama school and neither he nor the car were seen again … until, perhaps, now.

“For 45 years we have searched for Kyle and his car. We have followed hundreds of leads and have never gotten anything of substance from them,” Woodruff said.

The sheriff said they have drained lakes and conducted numerous searches in hopes of finding Clinkscales.

LaGrange is located north of Columbus in western Georgia and is about 20 miles from the Alabama state line.

On Tuesday, someone called 911 to report that he had seen what appeared to be a car in a creek along County Highway 83, a mile from County Highway 388, said Commander Terry Wood of the department of the Chambers County Sheriff, Alabama.

When authorities arrived, they saw the partially submerged vehicle, which Wood said was visible from the two-lane highway that runs over the creek.

Kyle Clinksdale’s white Ford Pinto was found this week in an Alabama creek.

Chambers County Sheriff Sid Lockhart said the car was found about three miles away from what would have been Clinkscales’ normal route back to school. Lockhart said it did not know if the area had been searched when Clinkscales initially disappeared.

The trunk of the vehicle was open, but Lockhart said he does not know if it opened after years in the water, or if the water level in the creek has dropped.

After removing the vehicle from the water, local authorities determined it was a white Pinto with a Troup County license plate.

Three locations can be distinguished on the map: Auburn University, to the south; to the center the location where the car was found and to the north the town of LaGrange, Georgia, where the student left before his disappearance.

Local authorities then contacted the Troup County Sheriff’s Office, which checked the license plate number in their system and determined it was the Clinkscales vehicle, Woodruff said.

Woodruff said the top of the car “is completely” rusted, but authorities discovered a wallet, credit cards, Clinkscales’ ID and several bones.

“We think they are human in nature. We called the Georgia Bureau of Investigation. They are currently at our facility disassembling the vehicle and, if possible, examining what’s inside to determine how many bones are there and if they are really his bones. “Woodruff said.

Woodruff said he hopes the cause of death can be determined “but we may never know.”

“The mere fact that hopefully we found him and the car brings me great relief,” said Woodruff, adding that Clinkscales’ mother passed away earlier this year in the hope that her son would return. home. Clinkscales’ father died in 2007, Woodruff said. Clinkscales was an only child.