Authorities have confirmed the identity of human remains found in a central Illinois storage unit as Richard Young, a former police chief of Maquon village, according to a press release from the Knox County Sheriff’s Office.

The confirmation of his identity was made on Tuesday by comparing DNA from his badly decomposed body with samples submitted by his relatives.

While the cause of Young’s death was not released, a toxicology report revealed that he had a high level of a toxic chemical commonly found in eyedrops in his system, as reported by WQAD-TV.

Marcy Oglesby, 50, of Maquon, has been charged with first-degree murder and concealing the death of a person in connection with the case. She has pleaded not guilty and is currently being held at the Knox County Jail.

Oglesby initially claimed that the smell in her unit was caused by an opossum that had died there during an interview with law enforcement.

However, she later confessed that there was a body inside a large box that she had initially refused to open for police. Although it was not immediately clear how the two were connected, Detective Jeremy Moore of the Knox County Sheriff’s Department testified in a hearing in February that Oglesby had been in a romantic relationship with Young.

Young’s remains were found on October 7, 2022, at Roberts Self Storage in Maquon, which is approximately 150 miles southwest of Chicago, after authorities were alerted to an unusual odor emanating from one of the units.

The Knox County Sheriff’s Office announced on Tuesday that the remains had been positively identified as those of Young, the former head of the Maquon village police, after DNA samples taken from his badly decomposed body were compared with samples submitted by his family.

While the cause of death was not disclosed, a toxicology report indicated that Young had a high level of a toxic chemical commonly found in eyedrops in his system.

Oglesby, a 50-year-old resident of Maquon, has been charged with first-degree murder and concealing the death of a person in connection with the case, and she has pleaded not guilty.

As of Wednesday, she remained in custody at the Knox County Jail.