ID ID - Nez Perce Co., WhtMale 229UMID, 18-99, in Snake River, Jun'82

We appreciate everyone who is looking at this case! We follow up on any/all leads to this. To show our appreciation, here's a couple of photos that you may find interesting; I've also include a profile sketch that isn't on our website or the Doe Network.

River2.jpg

JDProfile2.jpg

The top photo is a picture of the scene in 1982. The second is the profile sketch. I don't know how much help the profile is going to be. It looks different from the full face one and that is different from the actual photographs. Just keep in mind this is still an open homicide, so a lot of information cannot be shared but we'll do what we can.

Thanks to everyone!!!!!

Sgt. John Hilderbrand
Toni Greer
 
Here are larger versions:

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229UMID.jpg


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here is a thought. I am coming up blank with people who fit the description given. I neglected to factor in the black hair when I was searching originally.

I ask myself how could someone not be missing a teenager? one possibility is that this was a runaway or abducted child who was raised or kept by someone in the area, I'm thinking pedophile or predator. when the kid got too old he was done away with.

if that is the case then we'd have to look for a kid with black hair who was much younger when last known alive.

any thought folks?
 
here is a thought. I am coming up blank with people who fit the description given. I neglected to factor in the black hair when I was searching originally.

I ask myself how could someone not be missing a teenager? one possibility is that this was a runaway or abducted child who was raised or kept by someone in the area, I'm thinking pedophile or predator. when the kid got too old he was done away with.

if that is the case then we'd have to look for a kid with black hair who was much younger when last known alive.

any thought folks?

Certainly it's possible. Just think Shaun Hornbeck or Steven Stayner.
 
Certainly it's possible. Just think Shaun Hornbeck or Steven Stayner.

Stayner is the precise type I was thinking of. even with that, I could not find anyone in NAMUS with black hair missing before mid 1982 max age 20.
 
This guy looks like a good possible, although there is no photo available.

Gregory Robert Mitchell
https://www.findthemissing.org/cases/5650/3

Note: NamUs incorrectly lists his DLC as Nov 16, 1965. That is probably his DOB. His DLC is indicated in the description as Nov 16, 1981.

His description indicates a scar on his right or left shinbone.
He is the right height.
He has shoulder-length brown hair.

Looks like it's worth a look to me, despite that he is missing from Florida.

I am trying to find a photo of Gregory R Mitchell.

I checked Classmates.com and the only Winter Haven HS yearbook they have is the 1987 edition - No help here.

I am trying to get ahold of the Winter Haven HS school library to see if they can e-mail me a photo of GR Mitchell from the 1980 or 1981 yearbook (if he can be found in one of those books). Nobody answered the phone. I'll try again later.

I called the Winter Haven School Library to see what they found on Gregory Mitchell.

The librarian indicated that they went through the yearbooks from 79 to 81, and found nobody by that name. They found a couple of females with the last name Mitchell, but no males.

I asked if there were any other high schools in the area that would be attended by a resident of Winter Haven, and they said not back then.

That's strange that a 16-year old boy lived in Winter Haven, but apparently was not enrolled in the local high school. Perhaps he went either to a private school in a different city, or was home-schooled. Or maybe he just moved into town that year.
 
I called the Winter Haven School Library to see what they found on Gregory Mitchell.

The librarian indicated that they went through the yearbooks from 79 to 81, and found nobody by that name. They found a couple of females with the last name Mitchell, but no males.

I asked if there were any other high schools in the area that would be attended by a resident of Winter Haven, and they said not back then.

That's strange that a 16-year old boy lived in Winter Haven, but apparently was not enrolled in the local high school. Perhaps he went either to a private school in a different city, or was home-schooled. Or maybe he just moved into town that year.

Or dropped out.
 
The description in the State of Florida Crime Information Center website is completely different from the description in NamUs.

FCIC Link http://pas.fdle.state.fl.us/pas/person/viewMissingPerson-111026657.a
NamUs Link https://www.findthemissing.org/cases/5650/3"]https://www.findthemissing.org/cases/5650/3

_____________FCIC________________NamUs_____
Height:_____5'0" (60 inches)_____70.0 to 72.0 inches
Weight:_____95 lbs_______________200.0 pounds
Hair Color:_Sandy________________Brown


The height discrepancy might be be explainable as someone confusing 6'0" for 60 inches, and then typing it in as 5'0".

The NamUs info (except for weight) is pretty consistent to the John Doe. But the FCIC info is not.
 
The description in the State of Florida Crime Information Center website is completely different from the description in NamUs.

FCIC Link http://pas.fdle.state.fl.us/pas/person/viewMissingPerson-111026657.a
NamUs Link https://www.findthemissing.org/cases/5650/3"]https://www.findthemissing.org/cases/5650/3

_____________FCIC________________NamUs_____
Height:_____5'0" (60 inches)_____70.0 to 72.0 inches
Weight:_____95 lbs_______________200.0 pounds
Hair Color:_Sandy________________Brown


The height discrepancy might be be explainable as someone confusing 6'0" for 60 inches, and then typing it in as 5'0".

The NamUs info (except for weight) is pretty consistent to the John Doe. But the FCIC info is not.

I wonder if there's confusion between two different UIDs????
 
I wonder if there's confusion between two different UIDs????

I would think that 5'0" is a bit on the short side, even for a growing 16-year old boy. I am sure that there are plenty of 16 year old boys that short, but it is much shorter than average.
 
I just got done speaking with Dave Wallace of the Polk County Sheriff's office. He browsed over their casefile summary on Gregory Mitchell, and said that their investigative efforts led them to suspect that he and his accomplice were probably murdered in the Florida Panhandle area, and that he was involved in the drug trade.

He also said that his DNA and dentals have been entered in CODIS and NCIC since the mid-80's. I told him that from my recollection, there was no DNA on the decedent, so there would be no CODIS hit regardless of whether it was him or not. I wasn't sure if the decedent's dentals were in NCIC, but he said if they were, there would have been a NCIC hit on dentals.

He did not have any vital stats info on his summary sheet to verify which height and weight info was correct.

As for photos, they have none in the case file. I said that I checked with the Winter Haven High School Library and he wasn't in the yearbooks. He said that this doesn't surprise him, as he was a known juvenile delinquent from a young age, and probably didn't go to school. (you're right, carbuff!!).

All in all, if their investigative info is correct, this is probably not our guy. But I have no way of knowing how reliable their info is that leads them to believe that he and David Rees were probably murdered in the Florida panhandle.

If Sgt. Hildebrand wants to look further into this though to be 100% certain, they can contact Dave Wallace of the Polk County Sheriff's office. (863) 298-6200 x 1233.
 
Trivial Information. One of the original investigators pursued a lead to a ranch owned by an insurance company out of Texas. However, one person from the ranch said that a "mobster from Puerto Rico" (actually Costa Rica) named ROBERT VESCO was a close, personal friend of the owner of the ranch. It went on to say that Robert Vesco was wanted by the United States Government. There is a guy named Robert Vesco who was wanted by the State Department. He arrested and tried in Cuba in 1996. This Vesco allegedly had ties to the State of New York. He was a major US financier accused of defrauding investors of $225 million. The ranch employees also acted like indentured servants and did not like being there. There was also major drug traffic at this ranch (heroin and cocaine)...please remember, this is "podunk" northern Idaho where stuff like this did not go on in the late 70's, early 80's. It's speculated the body came from the ranch. This ranch is directly above the Salmon River and is less than one river mile from the Snake River. The ranch is now owned by an old Idaho family. No one is willing to talk about the people working there at the time, but several weapons were seized and test fired. None were the alleged murder weapon.

Another theory is John Doe was located approximately 1 to 2 weeks prior to the big 1982 "Rainbow Family" annual gathering which was held down by Council, Idaho. The Snake River flows past that town. So maybe this victim was going to attend the gathering and was recreating on the rivers before going.

No dental records are in the system. We only have facial xrays of the skull.

And thanks for checking with Polk County. Sgt. Hilderbrand will be contacting them.

Toni Greer
Nez Perce County Sheriff's Office
 
Trivial Information. One of the original investigators pursued a lead to a ranch owned by an insurance company out of Texas. However, one person from the ranch said that a "mobster from Puerto Rico" (actually Costa Rica) named ROBERT VESCO was a close, personal friend of the owner of the ranch. It went on to say that Robert Vesco was wanted by the United States Government. There is a guy named Robert Vesco who was wanted by the State Department. He arrested and tried in Cuba in 1996. This Vesco allegedly had ties to the State of New York. He was a major US financier accused of defrauding investors of $225 million. The ranch employees also acted like indentured servants and did not like being there. There was also major drug traffic at this ranch (heroin and cocaine)...please remember, this is "podunk" northern Idaho where stuff like this did not go on in the late 70's, early 80's. It's speculated the body came from the ranch. This ranch is directly above the Salmon River and is less than one river mile from the Snake River. The ranch is now owned by an old Idaho family. No one is willing to talk about the people working there at the time, but several weapons were seized and test fired. None were the alleged murder weapon.

Another theory is John Doe was located approximately 1 to 2 weeks prior to the big 1982 "Rainbow Family" annual gathering which was held down by Council, Idaho. The Snake River flows past that town. So maybe this victim was going to attend the gathering and was recreating on the rivers before going.

No dental records are in the system. We only have facial xrays of the skull.

And thanks for checking with Polk County. Sgt. Hilderbrand will be contacting them.

Toni Greer
Nez Perce County Sheriff's Office

question Officer Greer - the ranch hands who acted like indentured servants, did they appear to be Americans or foreigners?

The Costa Rican aspect is interesting. I've been to Costa Rica and their people are very fair skinned and while some are outright white, most have rounder faces like many other Latin Americans, albeit with fairer complexions.

the composite sketch, however, does not look like most Costa Ricans I have encountered here in the States and Costa Rica.
 
Most of the people on the ranch looked caucasian. However, I have seen the postmortem photos and the victim's face looks a lot rounder than the composite sketch; whether this is a result of being in the water and the trauma caused by the river, I don't know. There appears to be more flesh on the cheeks than what is on the sketches and the profile sketch looks nothing like the profile of the body due to the nose being battered by the rocks.

One of the witnesses from the ranch told the investigator at the time that the workers on the ranch were young men.

Hope this helps.
 
Here are pictures of the victim's hair and the scar. I'm sorry if they're not good, but it was 1982. And Carl, if I don't do it right, would you redo them please? Thank you. The name of the company that owned the ranch at the time was the Corporation of the Great Southwest and owned insurance companies called the Great Southwest Life Insurance Company out of Houston, Texas and the Sierra Life Insurance Comjpany out of Idaho Falls or Twin Falls, Idaho. These may not be exact names..

Toni Greer
Nez Perce County Sheriff's Office
 

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I appreciate all of your hardwork NPCSheriff!


The UID looks Native American or Canadian to me.

If the ranch hands were recent illegal immigrants from South America they wouldn't even be in the American system. Also, since you do have the post mortem, are you able to look at a possible match's photo and tell right away if he is your victim? Or was the victim's face pretty unrecognizeable?


(I personally can't take looking at post mortems, it grosses me right out.)
 
Here are pictures of the victim's hair and the scar. I'm sorry if they're not good, but it was 1982. And Carl, if I don't do it right, would you redo them please? Thank you. The name of the company that owned the ranch at the time was the Corporation of the Great Southwest and owned insurance companies called the Great Southwest Life Insurance Company out of Houston, Texas and the Sierra Life Insurance Comjpany out of Idaho Falls or Twin Falls, Idaho. These may not be exact names..

Toni Greer
Nez Perce County Sheriff's Office

for what it's worth, that composite makes the deceased's hair look much lighter than the jet black hair from the photo.

it is possible that the ranch imported workers from Costa Rica which might explain the deceased's good teeth. Costa Rica has an excellent health care system which I think includes dentistry.

all that said, it is not easy to trace a missing foreigner especially going back that far.
 
Here are pictures of the victim's hair and the scar. I'm sorry if they're not good, but it was 1982. And Carl, if I don't do it right, would you redo them please? Thank you. ...

Toni Greer
Nez Perce County Sheriff's Office


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2315315420045078242S600x600Q851_zpsa332abcc.jpg
 
I appreciate all of your hardwork NPCSheriff!


The UID looks Native American or Canadian to me.

If the ranch hands were recent illegal immigrants from South America they wouldn't even be in the American system. Also, since you do have the post mortem, are you able to look at a possible match's photo and tell right away if he is your victim? Or was the victim's face pretty unrecognizeable?


(I personally can't take looking at post mortems, it grosses me right out.)

We'd be able to rule someone out due to the post photographs; identification may be tricky without DNA, but we could contact law enforcement where the individual was reported missing and get more information. Although the hair is black, the victim is very light skinned (my spouse has coal black hair and his family hails from Ireland). Nez Perce County is the home of the Nez Perce Indian Tribe and no native Americans were reported missing at the time--1979-1983. We've put a large time span in because people just don't know exactly when someone disappears or they wait for a few years to report missing people, or don't even report them at all.

The victim was in very good physical condition for the early 80s. He wore size 26 jeans and small underwear. His chest was well developed; no body fat or "love handles". We have searched the Texas and New York missing persons databases because of the ranch and hit on Coe and Woolheater.
 
correction:

Gregory robert mitchell’s dob is 15-jan-65.

Also missing along with gregory was david ceinon rees of auburndale fl (dob: 24-jun-62).

https://www.findthemissing.org/cases/5652/2/

dc rees' dlc is listed as 16-nov-81. Since they disappeared at the same time, this confirms that the "date lka" (date of last contact) listed in namus for gregory mitchell is incorrect.


the dob for david ceinon rees is incorrect it should be 1964 as birth year
 

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