HUMAN remains found next to a busy motorway have been identified as a man last seen seven months ago as his family pay tribute.

Road workers made the grim discovery near a bridge between junctions three and four on the M67 in Tameside, east of Manchester, in August.

Police and forensics officers responded to the M67 after the grim discovery

DNA was extracted from the bone and identified the remains as 41-year-old Ajani Campbell

Officers were called to the scene and identified a skeleton at the bottom of the concrete embankment near a railway bridge on the busy road.

It prompted a major police response as detectives worked throughout the night at the scene and began trying to identify the mysterious remains.

There were no personal belongings or other items located with the skeleton that could assist officers in establishing an identity, Greater Manchester Police said.

A forensic post-mortem was subsequently carried out, and a bone was sent for examination.

Ajani was last seen on CCTV at Manchester Piccadilly station

Police said no items were found with the body that could assist their inquiries

DNA was extracted from the bone, and the remains were then identified as 41-year-old Ajani Campbell, from Preston, Lancashire.

Further investigation showed that Ajani was a high-risk missing person who had left his home address in January.

It was established that he boarded a train in Preston, Lancashire, on the day he disappeared and travelled to Manchester Piccadilly.

The last known sighting of Ajani was on CCTV footage – which captured him walking through the railway station at 12.30am on Sunday, January, 25.

Ajani’s heartbroken family have since paid tribute to him, saying: “It is with shattered hearts that we honour the memory of our beloved Ajani, who went missing on 24 January 2026.

“While the agonising search to find Ajani has come to an end, the reality of losing him has left us in a grief too deep for words.

“Ajani was a force of nature—funny, caring, and incredibly loving. He was a loving son, brother, uncle, cousin and friend.

“He had a passion for life that showed in everything he did, whether he was working out, exploring the great outdoors, or dropping bars and sharing his gift for rapping.

“He possessed a deeply spiritual soul that connected him to the world and the people around him in a profound way. To know Ajani was to love him, and he left an unforgettable mark on every single person he met.

“We want to express our deepest gratitude to everyone who helped search, prayed, and stood by us during this darkest chapter.

Emergency services remained at the scene overnight after roadworkers made the grim discovery

Police sent a bone for DNA testing to identify the skeleton

“Though his journey on this earth was cut devastatingly short, his light will live on forever in our hearts. Rest easy, our beautiful boy. You are loved beyond measure.”

Detective Sergeant Ian Parker said: “Our thoughts remain with Ajani’s family and loved ones as they continue to come to terms with this tragic news.

“Thanks to extensive enquiries, specialist forensic work and DNA analysis, we have now been able to formally identify the remains as Ajani Campbell, who was reported missing from Preston back in January.

“We have been working closely with Lancashire Constabulary since we picked up this investigation, sharing information and assisting each other with establishing facts.

“While this provides some answers for his family, our investigation remains ongoing and we are continuing to piece together Ajani’s movements in the hours before he was last seen in Manchester city centre.

“We are keeping an open mind regarding the circumstances surrounding Ajani’s death, and at this stage we are not ruling out any lines of enquiry.

“We know Ajani was last captured on CCTV on Deansgate in the early hours of Sunday 25 January 2026, and we are continuing to work to establish exactly what happened after that point.

“We have included an image of him in Manchester Piccadilly train station coming off an escalator at 12.25am on Sunday 25 January 2026.

“I would urge anyone who may have seen Ajani in the station, in Manchester that weekend, or who has any information which could assist our investigation, no matter how insignificant it may seem, to get in touch with us.”

Source: https://www.thesun.co.uk/news/40478977/human-remains-man-missing-seven-months/