FL FL - Collier Co., WhtMale UP1332, 21-35, in L-28 canal off I-75, tattoos, Jan'76

Romulus · Nov 16, 2016

653UMFL - Unidentified Male

Victim's tattoos touched-up by Charlaine Michaelis
Date of Discovery: January 13, 1976
Location of Discovery: Collier County, Florida
Estimated Date of Death: December 1975 to January 1976
State of Remains: Not recognizable - Decomposing/putrefaction
Cause of Death: Homicide by gunshot
Physical Description

Estimated Age: 21-35 years old
Race: White
Gender: Male
Height: 5'5" to 5'7"
Weight: 140 lbs.
Hair Color: Light brown, collar-length.
Eye Color: Unknown
Distinguishing Marks/Features: Tattoos: Heart with 1/2 arrow shaft entering inner side of heart on upper right arm, "HATE" on right hand knuckles, and a cross with distinct lines on either side and above between the right thumb and index finger. He had a slight beard.
Identifiers

Dentals: Not available. His teeth were natural and of poor hygiene.
Fingerprints: Available
DNA: Sample available - Not yet submitted.
Clothing & Personal Items

Clothing: Blue jeans, white leather belt, jockey shorts, white socks, and brown Roughout leather boots.
Jewelry: Unknown
Additional Personal Items: Unknown
Circumstances of Discovery

A worker checking the pumping station equipment on L-28 canal found the victim's remains. The area is two miles north of I-75 (Alligator Alley) near the 50 mile marker.
Investigating Agency(s)

Agency Name: Collier County Sheriff's Office
Agency Contact Person: Kim Cherney, Sr.
Agency Phone Number: 239-252-0050
Agency E-Mail: kim.cherney(at)colliersheriff.org
Agency Case Number: 76-1086
Agency Name: District 20 Medical Examiner's Office
Agency Contact Person: Marta Coburn
Agency Phone Number: 239-434-5020
Agency E-Mail: N/A
Agency Case Number: 1976-00016
NCIC Case Number: U720006201
NamUs Case Number: 1332
Information Source(s)

NamUs
Collier County Sheriff's Office
FLUIDDB
http://www.doenetwork.org/cases/653umfl.html

Gardener1850 · Sep 23, 2019

Still Unidentified. Current NAMUS link: The National Missing and Unidentified Persons System (NamUs)

MadMcGoo · Jan 4, 2021

Refreshing the thread...

BrownBear · Mar 16, 2023

No Exclusions for this UID on NamUs.

citizen_sleuth · Apr 7, 2023

Joe Kollin, "Is Collier County a Dumping Ground for Bodies?," Naples Daily News, 14 January 1976, 1A.

The latest discovery Tuesday afternoon was located about two miles north of that highway, Alligator Alley. The body was found in an area of dense growth near a canal. The location, the sheriff's department said, was 1 1/2 miles from the Broward County line.

Deputy Chief E. G. "Chuck" Whidden said he doesn't know if the victim was killed in Broward and dumped in Collier County, a suspicion because of the proximity to the county line.

"We'll have to call it a Collier County case for now," he said. "We don't know who he is or where he came from."

The medical examiner said the white male had been shot three times in the back of the head and twice in the back.

The victim appears to be 5-foot-6 to 5-foot-8, between 140-150 pounds and [had] collar-length light brown hair. The man was wearing blue corduroy pants, a white leather belt and leather boots.

[...]

The victim had been dead about two weeks, the department said.

Whidden said he isn't certain if the victim was killed in the ditch or killed elsewhere and dumped in the ditch.

[...]

The body was discovered by an oil company employe making a regular check of oil pipelines in the area.

"Bullet-Riddled Body Is Found," News-Press [Ft. Myers, FL], 14 January 1976, 1B.

The sheriff's department said the body, still unidentified last night, had three bullet wounds -- one in the head, one in the left rear rib cage and another in the right rear rib cage.

[...]

The officer said the body was found in an overgrown area on a dike mound two miles north of Alligator Alley's 38-mile marker. Ther [sic] body appeared to have been there for two to three weeks.

The man possibly was shot at the bottom of the dike and the body appeared to have been dragged up the hill to where it was found, an officer said.

"Identity Of Corpse Remains A Mystery," News-Press [Ft. Myers, FL], 15 February 1976, 3B.

[Collier County Sheriff Aubrey] Rogers said it would be hard to say whether the body was brought in from Broward County. However, he noted the body was found near the first turnoff from the Alley if a motorist is travelling [sic] west from Boward [sic].

The body was found by an oil company employe, Rogers said, who had spotted buzzards flocking in the area.

Joe Kollin, "Identity of Body Remains a Mystery," Naples Daily News, 26 February 1976, 5A.

[Deputy Chief E.G.] Whidden said he received a letter from the FBI Wednesday telling of its inability to make a fingerprint comparison.

"It is a common fingerprint, a basic pattern," Whidden said. "They have millions similar to it."

[...]

The investigation to determine the man's killer and the motive for the murder are at a standstill until his identity is learned, he said.

"We won't know where to start looking until we know who he is and where he came from and as of now, we don't have any idea who he is or where he is from," he said.

Because the body was found close to the Broward County line, it is possible the murder was an East Coast mob "hit," but it isn't known for sure.

FL FL - Collier Co., WhtMale UP1332, 21-35, in L-28 canal off I-75, tattoos, Jan'76

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