FL FL - Worthington Springs, AsianMale skeletal UP10980, 16-25, found among animal skulls

[Fuuro]

The National Missing and Unidentified Persons System (NamUs) - PHOTO OF SKULL AT LINK


This case is interesting to me because it takes place roughly an hour from where I have lived practically my whole life. I've never personally stopped by Worthington Springs (it is out of the way of my commute and I don't have family there), I do know a little bit about it and the surrounding areas. The area is very rural, and Union County (the county where Worthington Springs is located) is one of the poorest counties in the United States in terms of per-capita income.

What's particularly interesting to me is that the area does not have a sizable Asian population by any means. Almost none of the surrounding communities have sizable Asian populations with the exception of Gainesville, which is about a half hour south. This person would likely stand out.

I'm wondering if this could be like the Jenkins County, Georgia Jane Doe case, where a decomposed body was assumed to have belonged to an Asian female when later developments in the case suggested that she might have actually been Hispanic.

 

[coffeeandacig]

The National Missing and Unidentified Persons System (NamUs)

Namus UP#10980
Found: December 16, 2012
At:
10128 SW 36th Trail
Worthington Springs, FL (Union County, FL)
Age: 16-25 years
Unknown hair, eyes, height, weight
No estimated time of death

Neighbor found skull in area of woods littered with skulls from a number of animals and this skull.


Recreation from skull by coffeeandacig

 

[PayrollNerd]

That is along the Santa Fe River and is a wetland area. The seasonal floods could have brought the skull in from a surrounding property or neighboring town. That area also suffered considerable flooding during the 2004-205 hurricane seasons. DNA is a definite here unless LE has some tips we are not privy to.

 

[coffeeandacig]

That is along the Santa Fe River and is a wetland area. The seasonal floods could have brought the skull in from a surrounding property or neighboring town. That area also suffered considerable flooding during the 2004-205 hurricane seasons. DNA is a definite here unless LE has some tips we are not privy to.

Thanks for the information @PayrollNerd ! I updated the drawing with a more recent looking haircut, and a leaner face. Considering how bad his teeth appeared, I doubt he had a great diet. Hopefully, they were able to retrieve a DNA sample.

 

[bombardier]

wonder if they could get his DNA and use one of those programs like snapshot dna phenotype to get a better reconstruction... would also be helpful to pinpoint his skin tone and ethnicity.
Looked for young asian men on NamUs...with no estimated PMI I just put it down as missing between 1975 and 2011
Phouvuiay Thetsombandith - presumed dead via homicide. On the complete other side of USA from the UID so doubt this, but added him because he was one of the only men with "bad" teeth, most had good teeth/closed mouths/no photos.

Tung Dieu Tran - suspected foul play, also lived far away from UID. Has a long face that reminds me of coffeeandacig's first recon.

Peter C. Ng - not much info available, also far away in California (a lot of asian men missing out of Cali??), his jawline and cheekbones remind of the UID.

Phu Tan Nguyen - you can barely see his face but definitely has pronounced cheekbones. Don't want to assume anything but his smoking might predispose him to having bad teeth like the UID.

 

[PayrollNerd]

Years ago a Malaysian lady worked for me. Listening about her life before coming to the US, dental services were simply not an option. That was the norm, not the exception.

 

[coffeeandacig]

@bombardier Thanks for insulting my sketch.
But, it is true that DNA testing and some PMI would be really beneficial to this case. For all we know he could be a Laotian refugee from the 1970s.

 

[PayrollNerd]

Peter Ng looks Cambodian to me just from my life experience, no other reason. I took the two photos I thought I could line up with the skull and Tung Dieu Tran from Michigan seems the closest. I also found a photo of different ethnic skull shapes to compare. Perhaps it's the nose bridge that leads LE to think this skull is of an Asian male.

This could be a University of Florida (Gainesville is 30 miles south) international student who came to study and disappeared. That would fit with the young age range. His family may not have the means to figure out why they have never heard from him. Or maybe, the family is Michigan is looking for their son.

 

[Fuuro]

I actually started a thread for this UID a couple weeks back -- perhaps a moderator can merge the two? It's good that you started this thread, as it seems to have prompted some discussion on this case.

Peter Ng looks Cambodian to me just from my life experience, no other reason. I took the two photos I thought I could line up with the skull and Tung Dieu Tran from Michigan seems the closest. I also found a photo of different ethnic skull shapes to compare. Perhaps it's the nose bridge that leads LE to think this skull is of an Asian male.

This could be a University of Florida (Gainesville is 30 miles south) international student who came to study and disappeared. That would fit with the young age range. His family may not have the means to figure out why they have never heard from him. Or maybe, the family is Michigan is looking for their son.
View attachment 188841

I was thinking about this, too. I have personal experience with both UF and the surrounding area, and a large number of international students attending the university make it so that Gainesville has a significantly higher Asian population than almost any other location in north-central Florida. None of the other nearby cities, even including the larger ones, come close.

 

[bombardier]

Peter Ng looks Cambodian to me just from my life experience, no other reason. I took the two photos I thought I could line up with the skull and Tung Dieu Tran from Michigan seems the closest. I also found a photo of different ethnic skull shapes to compare. Perhaps it's the nose bridge that leads LE to think this skull is of an Asian male.

This could be a University of Florida (Gainesville is 30 miles south) international student who came to study and disappeared. That would fit with the young age range. His family may not have the means to figure out why they have never heard from him. Or maybe, the family is Michigan is looking for their son.
View attachment 188841

I agree, I'm by no means an expert on forensics but I'm guessing they identified the skull as 'asian' due to the flat nasal bridge and more zygomatic arch (cheek bone) projection. I know identifying race via skull shape is not 100% infallible, so perhaps he's hispanic / mixed / etc... dna would definitely be useful here.

 

[PayrollNerd]

Tung Dieu Tran has had DNA done and testing is complete according to Michigan Lostandmissing Facebook page post dated 9/21/2014. He is a few years older (24 +/-) than the estimated age of the skull (under 20). I wouldn't rule him out though. I wonder if they have done DNA on the skull now.

NamUs MP # 14050
#Missing Tung Dieu Tran
Date last seen September 18, 2003
Cooper Township, Michigan/County Kalamazoo

Tran was originally from Goshen, Indiana. His sister notified the Elkhart County, Indiana Sheriff's Dept. that her brother had left for Kalamazoo, MI to visit a friend and hadn't been heard from since.

His vehicle was later recovered being driven by this friend, in Allegan County, Michigan.

Foul play is suspected.

Date entered 02/29/2012
Age last seen 24 to 25 years old
Age now 35 years old
Race Asian or Pacific Islander
Sex Male
Height (inches) 64.0
Weight (pounds) 160.0

Hair color Black
Left eye color Brown
Right eye color Brown

Piercings
Labret piercing (centered under lower lip)

Transportation Methods
Vehicle make Honda
Vehicle model (Japan) Motorcycle
Year 2003
Style Sedan
Vehicle color Black
Tag state Indiana
Vehicle comments
Civic

DNA
Status: Sample submitted - Tests complete

Michigan Lostnmissing

 

[bombardier]

hmm...I wonder if it would be worth it to contact the police department responsible for Tung Dieu Tran and mention the asian male UID? Even if the UID doesn't have DNA testing done, they could compare dental records...

 

[Coffee56]

I wish we knew more about where he was headed looking for work

Howard Shizue Takanaka Jr. – The Charley Project

https://www.missingpersons.doj.wi.gov/missing/howard-takanaka

 

[PayrollNerd]

I wish we knew more about where he was headed looking for work

Howard Shizue Takanaka Jr. – The Charley Project

https://www.missingpersons.doj.wi.gov/missing/howard-takanaka

I think the bridge of Howard’s nose is too prominent for this skull. The height of the skull appears to match but that could be deceptive with his receding hairline.

 

[Fuuro]

Bumping.

The University of Florida is located about a half-hour from Worthington Springs and has a large Chinese student population.

 

[Goecke]

If I'm not mistaken, the Jane Doe in Georgia was originally thought to be Hispanic but was later revealed to be most likely Asian? Then again, her body was cremated and there's no DNA on file so there's no way to confirm her race for sure.

Given this case, I wouldn't rule out Hispanic or Native American MPs for possible identities. If he was a college student, I feel like his disappearance would be noticed fairly easily if he was still enrolled in classes when he went missing, but it's interesting to note that there's a nearby university with a large amount of Asian students.

I don't think it's a coincidence that he was found with a bunch of animal skulls. It makes me think some sort of ritual aspect was involved?

 

[Fuuro]

Bumping. Could a moderator please merge the other thread with this thread so that everything is in one place? Sorry for the confusion.

Also, @coffeeandacig, you might already know this, but your reconstruction is now the case ID for this UID on NamUS. The photo of the skull has been removed.

 

[Goecke]

Bumping

 

[Captain Beck]

Could this be the skull of a Japanese WW2 soldier, brought back by a soldier?
This was done and heavily frowned upon by higher command in the US forces. I believe it was even forbidden.

 

[Ray_of_hope]

wonder if they could get his DNA and use one of those programs like snapshot dna phenotype to get a better reconstruction... would also be helpful to pinpoint his skin tone and ethnicity.
Looked for young asian men on NamUs...with no estimated PMI I just put it down as missing between 1975 and 2011
Phouvuiay Thetsombandith - presumed dead via homicide. On the complete other side of USA from the UID so doubt this, but added him because he was one of the only men with "bad" teeth, most had good teeth/closed mouths/no photos.

Tung Dieu Tran - suspected foul play, also lived far away from UID. Has a long face that reminds me of coffeeandacig's first recon.

Peter C. Ng - not much info available, also far away in California (a lot of asian men missing out of Cali??), his jawline and cheekbones remind of the UID.

Phu Tan Nguyen - you can barely see his face but definitely has pronounced cheekbones. Don't want to assume anything but his smoking might predispose him to having bad teeth like the UID.

I lived in that area for two years 1985 to 1987 and there were a lot of Asian docs that worked in the prison system hospitals and clinics. Due to the extreme shortage and need for medical personnel, particularly doctors, many Vietnamese were given waivers to work in Florida penal systems. There was a lot of prejudice experienced by these wonderful people and the stories of their captivity and torture in Vietnam was horrific.

True story, I met a woman who moved to Union County because she looked all over at demographics and found the ratio of males to females to be the best in the nation in Union County. So she moved down and was quite surprised to discover that the ratios included the male prison population. RMC (Reception Medical Center) was the intake of all inmates within the state before they were kept or shipped off to other facilities.