List of unidentified murder victims in New York

Westchester County Jane Doe, unidentified since 1988

In New York, there are a number of murder victims, in the category of unidentified decedents, whose identities have yet to be found. In most of these cases, their murderer or murderers have also gone undiscovered.

Ulster County John Doe

External images
Digital reconstruction
Ring
Watch

A frozen male corpse was found on February 1, 1970 in Saugerties, Ulster County, New York, at the bottom of a hill near a highway by two children who were out sledding. He was aged between 35 and 45 and had been shot four times. The victim was approximately 5 feet 3 inches tall and weighed about 155 pounds. He had dark brown hair, with balding at the crown. He appeared to be from outside the US, as he wore a greyish-green suit described as "European-style", an Omega Seamaster wristwatch (serial number 16815714) that was sold in Portugal, and a gold ring with an imitation ruby of Portuguese manufacture.[1] Other clothing included a tan raincoat, a dress shirt, a Playboy brand black tie, a green undershirt made in Taiwan, blue pajamas, a set of matching underclothes made in Korea, and grey socks. He wore black leather shoes with Canadian-made "Wings" brand rubber overshoes.[2] The death is believed to be gang-related. Members of local organized crime groups were questioned, but never revealed who the victim was.[3]

Chautauqua County Jane Doe

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Sketch

On December 6, 1983, the body of a woman was found in Ellery, Chautauqua County, New York. The woman had been shot multiple times: twice in the chest, once in the mouth and once in the back.[4] The woman carried documents available in European countries and Canada and had European-appearing dental work. The victim had brown eyes and graying brown hair, also estimated to have given birth to a child within the last fifteen years. She was estimated to be between thirty-three and thirty-seven when she had died, which had happened little time before her body was found in a roadside ditch. She was around five feet four inches tall and weighed around 128 pounds. It is suspected that she may have been Canadian, as she carried a handwritten note with indecipherable abbreviations that originated from an establishment in British Columbia, Canada. She had some distinct characteristics: a wart was visible above her left eye, a mole was found behind the left ear and a scar was visible on her neck.[5] The victim's clothing has caused some issues with estimating her social class, as she wore both expensive and inexpensive clothing. An undershirt she wore, originated from Italy and was not worth a lot of money. This product had also not been circulated around the world. She wore a multicolored trench coat that was fairly expensive, along with a pullover and a "handmade" skirt.[6]

Putnam County John Doe (1985)

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Sketch
3D reconstruction

On April 2, 1985, a man's remains were found nearly two years after his death, in Philipstown, Putnam County, New York. He was found with a dress shirt along with shorts, two pairs of pants with army coloring and corduroy material and work boots. Several pairs of underwear and socks were also found at the scene. A map of New York and New Jersey, a comb, dental floss and playing cards were among his possessions. At one time in his life, he received orthodontic care [7][8]

Westchester County Jane Doe (1988)

Another reconstruction of the Westchester County Jane Doe

On February 14, 1988, the nude body of a woman who had been strangled and beaten was found on a street in Mount Vernon, Westchester County, New York. The victim had been dead for approximately six hours, and was bound at the wrists and ankles.[9] She was aged 18 to 30, with hazel eyes and light brown or blonde hair. She was 5 feet 3 inches tall, weighed 105 pounds, and had pierced ears without earrings. She had numerous freckles and moles (including a large and prominent mole on her neck). Her underarms had not been shaved for approximately two weeks, but her pubic area was recently shaved. Her nails were painted pink prior to her death.[10] No clothing was found at or near the scene.[11]

Irondequoit Jane Doe

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Sketch

A female skeleton was found in a shallow grave by a boy who was digging at the edge of his family's property in Irondequoit, Monroe County, New York. The victim, who was aged between 15 and 19 at death, may have been deceased for as long as 10 to 30 years before she was found on July 31, 1988.[12] No clothing was found at the scene; a single white button, which may have belonged to the victim, was found near the remains. The remains were those of a white female between 4 feet 10 inches and 5 feet 5 inches tall. Her weight, hair and eye color were not possible to determine.[13] No signs of trauma were found, but the cause of death was ruled as a homicide.[14][15] She had significant dental restoration using gold foil fillings.[16]

Long Island serial killer victims

The dismembered corpses of several females discovered between 1996 and present day.[7]

"Peaches"

The torso of a woman found in 1997. She is known for her unique peach tattoo.[17]

Woodbury John Doe

External images
NCMEC reconstruction
Clothing
Digital reconstruction

On May 3, 1998, the skeleton of a black male was found in the Orange County town of Woodbury. He had been shot twice in the head by two guns of different caliber and left near a rest area for hikers. His body had been wrapped in plastic and he was fully clothed.[18] He carried a hair pick, a lighter and a French to English dictionary, indicating that he may have been from a Francophone country and not the US. Although the body was found in 1998, he was believed to have died as early as 1985. He was knock-kneed and between 5 feet 6 inches and 5 feet 11 inches in height, although he was more likely around five feet nine inches.[19] He had been between seventeen and twenty-five, but could have been up to thirty-five.[20] He wore a blue jacket, a black shirt containing a pot of gold design with the words "follow your dreams," jeans and sneakers from the Pony company.[21][22] He had had dental work, including fillings, crowns and a possible root canal. He had suffered a fracture of his right hand some weeks prior to death.[19]

"Julissa Doe"

Julissa Doe

The strangled body of a Hispanic, possibly Dominican, woman was located in New York City, New York County, New York on April 27, 2004. The woman was deceased less than a day and was between twenty and thirty years old when she was murdered.[23] Because she wore a gold earring with the name "Julissa" engraved into it, some believe that it was her first name when she was alive. The woman was allegedly killed after attending a party with three men and was killed during an argument. She wore a tan and black shirt with two thermal shirts, a sports bra and mismatched socks. She had some scars found on her body, one which appeared to have been the letters "J" and "M".[24]

"Cherries"

A torso and pair of legs discovered in 2007. Like the torso found in 1997, dubbed "Peaches", she may have been a victim of the Long Island serial killer.[25]

References

  1. ↑ "Case File: 405UMNY". doenetwork.org. The Doe Network. 22 January 2012. Retrieved 4 December 2014.
  2. ↑ "NamUs UP # 9819". identifyus.org. National Missing and Unidentified Persons System. 24 January 2012. Retrieved 4 December 2014.
  3. ↑ "Noble & Ready". canyouidentifyme.blogspot.com. 27 November 2011. Retrieved 4 December 2014.
  4. ↑ Postmortem photo at link "Unsolved cases". New York State Troopers.
  5. ↑ "Chautauqua New York Jane Doe December 1983". canyouidentifyme.org. Retrieved 11 February 2015.
  6. ↑ "Case File 193UFNY". doenetwork.org. The Doe Network. Retrieved 11 February 2015.
  7. ↑ 7.0 7.1 "Decades Later, Who is this John Doe?". Retrieved 18 April 2014.
  8. ↑ "Unidentified: Philipstown, Putnum County". New York State Troopers. Retrieved 28 July 2014.
  9. ↑ "Westchester New York Jane Doe February 1988". canyouidentifyme.org. Retrieved 28 September 2014.
  10. ↑ "Case File: 51UFNY". doenetwork.org. The Doe Network. Retrieved 28 September 2014.
  11. ↑ Postmortem photo at link "NamUs UP # 10229". identifyus.org. National Missing and Unidentified Persons System. 3 May 2012. Retrieved 28 September 2014.
  12. ↑ "Case Report - NamUs UP # 2607". identifyus.org. National Missing and Unidentified Persons System. 2 September 2008. Retrieved 18 August 2014.
  13. ↑ "Monroe New York Jane Doe July 1988". canyouidentifyme.org. Retrieved 18 August 2014.
  14. ↑ "Case File: 122UFNY". doenetwork.org. The Doe Network. Retrieved 18 August 2014.
  15. ↑ "Unidentified: Town of Irondequoit, Monroe County, NY". New york State Troopers. 4 October 2000. Retrieved 18 August 2014.
  16. ↑ "Jane Doe 1988". missingkids.com. National Center for Missing and Exploited Children. Retrieved 18 August 2014.
  17. ↑ "Long Island’s Unidentified Murder Victims". Long Island Press. Retrieved 15 October 2014.
  18. ↑ "Case File 218UMNY". doenetwork.org. The Doe Network. Retrieved 16 August 2014.
  19. ↑ 19.0 19.1 "John Doe 1998". missingkids.com. National Center for Missing and Exploited Children. Retrieved 18 August 2014.
  20. ↑ "Unidentified: Town of Woodbury, Orange County, NY". New York State Troopers. 22 September 1998. Retrieved 16 August 2014.
  21. ↑ "Case Report - NamUs UP # 9787". identifyus.org. National Missing and Unidentified Persons System. 13 January 2012. Retrieved 18 August 2014.
  22. ↑ "Orange New York John Doe May 1998". canyouidentifyme.org. Retrieved 16 August 2014.
  23. ↑ Postmortem photo at link "Case Report - NamUs UP # 5214". identifyus.org. National Missing and Unidentified Persons System. 14 May 2009. Retrieved 16 October 2014.
  24. ↑ "Case File: 1115UFNY". doenetwork.org. The Doe Network. Retrieved 16 October 2014.
  25. ↑ "Cherry Tattoo". Long Island Press. Retrieved 15 October 2014.

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to unidentified murder victims.