Paul Gustafson, then lead investigator in the disappearance of Lori Bova, is pictured in 2002 outside Bova’s home.

The family of a Lakewood woman missing since June 1997 is thanking the community for support following confirmation Thursday that remains found last week in the north county are not those of Lori Ceci Bova.

Chautauqua County Sheriff James Quattrone said one of the two sets of remains were those of a Buffalo woman reported missing over the summer. The other set of remains — found near a public trail in the town of Portland — have not yet been identified. However, the sheriff said a comparison of dental records confirm the remains are not of Bova or Corrie Anderson, another woman reported missing from Chautauqua County.

Bova’s sister, Jennifer Shields, provided the following statement after Quattrone’s press conference in Mayville: “The Ceci family is praying for the families who are involved in the findings and will always be praying for the missing until one day they will be found. We can’t express our gratitude to everyone who’s prayed for our family.”

Bova was last seen the night of June 7, 1997, after leaving a Lakewood restaurant.

Anderson was last seen Oct. 28, 2008, leaving the former Lake County Dodge car dealership on Washington Street in Jamestown after visiting a friend.

One set of remains were found Sept. 26 and another set — likely placed there within a couple of months — were found the following day. The second set discovered matched 50-year-old Marquita Mull, who was reported missing from the Buffalo area in July.

The first set was comprised of nearly a full body in a shallow grave and could have been there for decades, Quattrone said.

“We have … used dental records to rule out any of the missing people from Chautauqua County,” Quattrone said, “specifically Lori Ceci Bova and Corrie Anderson. Dental records do not match the remains of that body. We are still looking at sending a portion of the skeleton to the New York State Crime Lab to do DNA testing, so we can do some comparisons to Patricia Laemmerhirt and any other missing person cases that we have around Western New York.”

Laemmerhirt resided with her husband and children on North Portage Street in Westfield. She went missing in April 1976.