Missing Missouri Deputy Attorney General Found Nearly A Week After Vanishing In Wyoming Wilderness

Nina Golgowski Fri, August 28, 2026 at 3:46 PM UTC

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Shaun Mackelprang was dehydrated and disoriented when found, his brother said.Sublette County Sheriff's Office

A Missouri deputy attorney general who vanished during a solo hiking trip in Wyoming’s isolated backcountry has been found alive nearly a week after he was last seen.

Shaun Mackelprang, 55, was located Wednesday morning by search-and-rescue workers and transported by helicopter from the Wind River mountain range, the Sublette County Sheriff’s Office announced.

Authorities said his recovery came six days after he set out to hike the Green River Lakes Trailhead with the goal of reaching Gannett Peak, Wyoming’s highest.

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The Wind River Range of Wyoming is part of the Rocky Mountains.Cascadian via Getty Images

“He was located by a ground team and was dehydrated,” Travis Bingham, a public information officer with the sheriff’s office, told HuffPost in an email Thursday afternoon. His full condition, including potential injuries, wasn’t immediately known, he said.

“He is resting and recovering with family at the hospital. We are allowing him to receive treatment and debrief him later,” he added.

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Mackelprang’s brother, Romel Mackelprang, told Cowboy State Daily that he planned to reach the mountain last Friday and return home the next day. He was dehydrated and disoriented when found near a lake that looked similar to one where he had left his tent pitched, he said.

“I think what happened is he ... clearly got disoriented coming back down,” Romel Mackelprang said, noting they knew his brother reached the mountain peak Friday “because he signed the book.”

In a statement shared by the sheriff’s department Thursday night, Shaun Mackelprang expressed his gratitude to his rescuers.

“It’s no easy task to put your life on the line for someone else, especially a stranger who had no place in your life. These men and women did so without a second thought,” he said.

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The sheriff’s office also stressed the importance of hikers signing every trailhead’s registry and engaging with fellow travelers. Several hikers who saw Mackelprang on the trail were crucial in helping find him, they said.

“Several of these people took the time to speak with Shaun, encountered him on the trail, or provided key information which allowed us to narrow our search window. Without this information, we would not have been successful,” the office said.

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