KNOXVILLE, Tenn. (WATE) — The Tennessee Bureau of Investigation has submitted samples from 10 unidentified skeletal remains to an organization to assist in finding out who they are.

The TBI published the information on their website, sharing that the remains were submitted to Othram Inc, a private lab based in Woodlands, Texas, to conduct DNA extraction and sequencing processes in December as a part of the Unidentified Human Remains Initiative. The funding for this came from the Tennessee General Assembly, which approved a one-time funding of $100,000 specifically for specialized forensic genetic genealogy testing in TBI cold cases in 2022.

There are 14 potential cases involving unidentified human remains that met the criteria for the Unidentified Human Remains Initiative. Of those, 10 were submitted, and more may be submitted before July 2023, the TBI said.

Othram is the organization that recently helped detectives identify a woman who was found in Gatlinburg and had been unidentified for 48 years. In addition to being able to get DNA from most forensic sources, like blood, tissue, and skeletal remains, Othram is uniquely able to do everything in house in a purpose-build forensic laboratory, a spokesperson for the organization told WATE.

The list given by the TBI includes 10 cases, ranging from 1977 to 2018. Six of those cases are from East Tennessee. The details for those cases listed by the TBI are:

• A white male estimated to be between the ages of 51 and 60 found on December 2, 1977 in Johnson County,
• A white female estimated to be between the ages of 14 and 17 found in Cheatham County on October 21, 1981.
• A white female found in McMinn County estimated to be between the ages of 20 and 30 found on August 5, 1983.
• A black man believed to be between the ages of 15 and 20 found on August 26, 1983, in Cumberland County.
• A white female estimated to be between the ages of 30 and 40 found on April 2, 1985 in Cheatham County.
• A white male found in Loudon County believed to be between the ages of 51 and 60 found on October 1, 1985.
• A white male believed to be between the ages of 30 and 40 found on August 24, 1986 in Claiborne County.
• A white male estimated to be between the ages of 22 and 35, found in Hickman County on April 7, 1988
• A Hispanic male estimated to be between the ages of 25 and 29 found in Cocke County on August 9, 1999
• A white male estimated to be between the ages of 47 and 67 found on May 18, 2018 in Dickson County.

WATE reached out to the TBI for additional information on the cases. According to TBI more information about the initiative will be released in June.