Crow man's remains may be finally coming home

The remains of Crow man who died on a hunting trip over three years ago might finally be returned to his family for burial.

Robert "Bugsy" Springfield, 49, died in the Bighorn Mountains of Montana. His remains have been stuck at an FBI lab in Virginia due to backlog in DNA processing.

The FBI now says it has approval to release the remains. An exact date hasn't been specified -- and Springfield's widow remains skeptical.

"I kind of do. I want to [believe the FBI]," Veronica Springfield told The Billings Gazette. "But they've done this to us so many times." The family lives in Casper, Wyoming.

Springfield went to hunt on Crow territory in September 18, 2004. He was reported missing when he failed to meet with his son and a family friend the next day.

It wasn't until October 2005 when Springfield's body was found. An exact cause of death has never been stated. "I think he was killed," sister Myra Gros Ventre said, citing a potential hunting accident or a deliberate shooting.

Get the Story:
Finally Coming Home: Remains of man dead since'04 still in FBI hands (The Billings Gazette 11/1)