FL FL - “Maritime John Doe", Wht, 65-75, maritime tattoo, Atlantic Ocean, Sep'03 - Donald H. Kirk

[branmuffin]

Unidentified Person Florida Navy


The National Missing and Unidentified Persons System (NamUs)

BOYNTON BEACH, Fla. (CBS12) — Detectives are asking for the public's help in identifying a man who was found floating in the Atlantic Ocean at least a decade ago.

The body of a man who was at least 65-years-old was discovered floating about five miles east of the Boynton Beach Inlet on Sept. 7, 2003, the Palm Beach County Sheriff's Office said. The PBSO Marine Unit recovered the body and an autopsy didn't reveal any trauma to the body.

The body was believed to be in the water for less than 24 hours and went into the water in Miami-Dade or Broward Counties, according to the sheriff's office. The man was wearing a white T-shirt, white polo shirt with black and brown pinstripes on the border of the sleeves and neckline, khaki pants, blue underwear, brown socks, no shoes and had a brown weaved leather belt.

Detectives released a composite sketch of the man, including a maritime tattoo on his right forearm

65 to 75 year old White Male

Date found September 07, 2003 in Boynton Beach, Florida

The victim was located floating face down in a weed line approx. 5 miles east of the Boynton Inlet and 3 miles north, in Boynton Beach, Florida. The detectives believe that this person may have possibly entered the water in Dade or Broward Counties.

Old tattoo which appears to be an anchor or some type of Navy tattoo

Scar/mark:
12 inch scar on the center of his stomach and back. To the left of the scar on his stomach was another 3 inch scar. 12 inch scar on his left shoulder blade. 1 in scar on neck. 9 in scar on abdomen. "zipper" 6 in scar on lumbar region

Possibly wore a back brace

What is a weed line?

 

[branmuffin]

I came across this one which is the old sketch

John Doe Florida Navy

John Doe Florida Navy
65 to 75 year old White Male

Date found September 07, 2003 in Boynton Beach, Florida

Old tattoo which appears to be an anchor or some type of Navy tattoo



Race: White
Sex: Male
Weight (pounds): 176, Estimated
Height (inches): 73, Estimated
Hair color: Red/Auburn
Eye color: Unknown

Circumstances:
The victim was located floating face down in a weed line approx. 5 miles east of the Boynton Inlet and 3 miles north, in Boynton Beach, Florida. The detectives believe that this person may have possibly entered the water in Dade or Broward Counties.

Scars and Marks: 12 inch scar on the center of his stomach and back. To the left of the scar on his stomach was another 3 inch scar. A 12 inch scar on his left shoulder blade.

Tattoos: Old tattoo which appears to be an anchor or some type of Navy tattoo

Clothing on body: White t-shirt, white polo shirt with black and brown pinstripes on the border of the sleeves and neckline, khaki pants and brown socks

Fingerprint information is currently not available
Dental Status: No dental information is currently available.
DNA Status: No DNA information is currently available

Do you think his hair is dyed? Usually redheads are the first to go gray.

 

[GatorFL]

What is a weed line?

A line of weeds in the surf. Very common, you can see some of them stuck in his shirt in the NSFW pics. Fisherman are always on the lookout for a weed line. They're part of the food chain.

 

[GatorFL]

Do you think his hair is dyed? Usually redheads are the first to go gray.

Looks pretty natural in the PM pics. But who knows for sure?

 

[coffeeandacig]

Looks pretty natural in the PM pics. But who knows for sure?

Kind of looks like my cousins hair. He's a blonde, went gray with age, and then ended up with a orangish tint from brown hair dye that faded really quickly.

 

[branmuffin]

I requested his case file.

He's got a brief entry on the PBSO website: White Male Found in Boynton Beach Sunday, September 7, 2003 Approximate Age - 65-75 years old - Palm Beach County Sheriff's Office

I am told there will be a segment on tonights news on all of PBSO's unidentified. I'll record it.

Images of his pants look white not khaki as stated in this release. Also the height has changed from 6ft 1in in the original release to 5ft 7in. That's a bit of a change.

I don't think this guy looks frail. I do think he's at the higher age estimate. If he had hernia surgery he could have been wearing the brace if he was fishing for bigger fish on a boat. There is no information on the age of the scars on the UID. Here's a list of medical conditions that respond to wearing a back brace, taking note that some people wear them to improve their posture.

• Kyphosis
• Ankylosing spondylitis
• Osteoporosis
• Back muscle sprains
• Spinal cord injuries
• Scoliosis
• Spinal tumors
• Spinal fractures
• Whiplash
• Spondylolisthesis

 

[coffeeandacig]

Images of his pants look white not khaki as stated in this release. Also the height has changed from 6ft 1in in the original release to 5ft 7in. That's a bit of a change.

I don't think this guy looks frail. I do think he's at the higher age estimate. If he had hernia surgery he could have been wearing the brace if he was fishing for bigger fish on a boat. There is no information on the age of the scars on the UID. Here's a list of medical conditions that respond to wearing a back brace, taking note that some people wear them to improve their posture.

• Kyphosis
• Ankylosing spondylitis
• Osteoporosis
• Back muscle sprains
• Spinal cord injuries
• Scoliosis
• Spinal tumors
• Spinal fractures
• Whiplash
• Spondylolisthesis

Poor guy. He was probably in a lot of pain.
I think you're right @branmuffin he is at the older age limit.
I'm going to make a lot of wild guesses, so please be patient with my speculation...

I think he is possibly around 77 years old, being born around 1926. I'd say he entered the Navy near the end of WW2 in 1944-45. Since he was a child of the Depression, I'd say he had untreated scoliosis from childhood. It would explain the height discrepancy from an original 6' 1" to 5' 7". It is very possible that he was suffering immense pain. Curvature of the spine can cause a crushing of the internal organs, since they are pushed downward as the back hunches forward. This crushing can lead to breathing problems, hernia's of intestines, greater stomach bile secretion, and a myriad of other problems. It is a pain filled existence to suffer with scoliosis at it's advanced stages.

JMHO...

 

[GatorFL]

Images of his pants look white not khaki as stated in this release.

Khakis can refer to the type of pants here, so instead of jeans he's described as wearing khakis. They're Dockers, if you walk into a dept store and ask to see khakis, that is what they will show you.

Interesting the size of them, 38 x 31. It is visible in one of the scene photos. He's not 6'1" with 31" legs, maybe more like 5'8".

 

[branmuffin]

Khakis can refer to the type of pants here, so instead of jeans he's described as wearing khakis. They're Dockers, if you walk into a dept store and ask to see khakis, that is what they will show you.

Interesting the size of them, 38 x 31. It is visible in one of the scene photos. He's not 6'1" with 31" legs, maybe more like 5'8".

It's funny, this is the second UID that I've come across on WS where the deceased's height is listed as much taller and the pants of the deceased would suggest a much smaller guy. One sleuther mentioned that all the men in her family had big bellies and short legs and really were the taller height measurement. So who knows. I'm 5ft 2in tall and the inseam on my jeans is 29 inches so I must have a short torso.

I do agree that the term khaki has become so common that it can refer to the material as well as the colour. If the pants are a light beige or sand colour they do not appear so in the images, unless the image has been overexposed.

 

[rainwaterstill]

The tattoo looks like a military tattoo for the Marines. I see the globe, the eagle and the anchor. Would Merchant Marines also be entitled to wear those tattoos?

I couldn't edit to shrink the exact tattoo location of this example- I apologize. It is from a Marine tat site. The site shows 91 very common Marine and Merchant Marine tattoos. Many USMC tattoos seem to have "Semper Fi" incorporated into the design.
Top 91 Marines Tattoo Ideas - [2021 Inspiration Guide]

 

[MagicCityMan]

A line of weeds in the surf. Very common, you can see some of them stuck in his shirt in the NSFW pics. Fisherman are always on the lookout for a weed line. They're part of the food chain.

Ahhh yes. Spent lots of time in my childhood looking for weed lines and diving birds fishing offshore

 

[MagicCityMan]

Images of his pants look white not khaki as stated in this release. Also the height has changed from 6ft 1in in the original release to 5ft 7in. That's a bit of a change.

I don't think this guy looks frail. I do think he's at the higher age estimate. If he had hernia surgery he could have been wearing the brace if he was fishing for bigger fish on a boat. There is no information on the age of the scars on the UID. Here's a list of medical conditions that respond to wearing a back brace, taking note that some people wear them to improve their posture.

• Kyphosis
• Ankylosing spondylitis
• Osteoporosis
• Back muscle sprains
• Spinal cord injuries
• Scoliosis
• Spinal tumors
• Spinal fractures
• Whiplash
• Spondylolisthesis

Highly unlikely that he was out by himself on a boat due to his physical state...boating/fishing is hard work and even the most experienced fishermen usually go out with 1 or more other people. People do, of course, go out alone and fall off their vessels out at sea (look up Rob Conrad) but the vessel would presumably end up somewhere. If he was out fishing with others (certainly possible) then why would they not have reported him missing at sea?
This case really truly baffles me.

 

[dotr]

Highly unlikely that he was out by himself on a boat due to his physical state...boating/fishing is hard work and even the most experienced fishermen usually go out with 1 or more other people. People do, of course, go out alone and fall off their vessels out at sea (look up Rob Conrad) but the vessel would presumably end up somewhere. If he was out fishing with others (certainly possible) then why would they not have reported him missing at sea?
This case really truly baffles me.

Missed or forgot that this UID man's death is being investigated as a homicide..
https://www.wptv.com/news/region-c-...-case-homicide-in-palm-beach-county-from-2003
Apr 30, 2019 rbbm.
''Detectives said he was found floating in the Atlantic Ocean, approximately five miles east of the Boynton Beach Inlet, on Sept. 7, 2003.

PBSO's Violent Crimes Division is investigating his death as a homicide.
An autopsy did not reveal any trauma to his body, and the cause of death is unknown.''

Photo by: Palm Beach County Sheriff's Office

Photo by: Palm Beach County Sheriff's Office

 

[PayrollNerd]

Missed or forgot that this UID man's death is being investigated as a homicide..
https://www.wptv.com/news/region-c-...-case-homicide-in-palm-beach-county-from-2003
Apr 30, 2019 rbbm.
''Detectives said he was found floating in the Atlantic Ocean, approximately five miles east of the Boynton Beach Inlet, on Sept. 7, 2003.

PBSO's Violent Crimes Division is investigating his death as a homicide.
An autopsy did not reveal any trauma to his body, and the cause of death is unknown.''

Photo by: Palm Beach County Sheriff's Office

Photo by: Palm Beach County Sheriff's Office

Ahhhh..... so there's not generally any trauma when you fall off a boat...... or maybe were pushed off a boat...... hmmmm.

 

[branmuffin]

Ahhhh..... so there's not generally any trauma when you fall off a boat...... or maybe were pushed off a boat...... hmmmm.

Or possibly he was fishing from a pier and someone robbed him and dumped him over the railing?

 

[PayrollNerd]

Or possibly he was fishing from a pier and someone robbed him and dumped him over the railing?

Very possible and that was my first suspicion too. Since he was so tightly wound with the back brace, that would suppress much of the trauma of landing in the water. I wonder if they could tell anything by the bruising patterns, like how he landed in the water. It takes a bit for the bruising to happen after death. Of course the bloating may distort the bruising also and any hematomas may not be as obvious.

Who in the family owned a boat? Does anyone remember the family renting a boat? Who would normally go fishing? Did they take him with them when they went?

 

[branmuffin]

Very possible and that was my first suspicion too. Since he was so tightly wound with the back brace, that would suppress much of the trauma of landing in the water. I wonder if they could tell anything by the bruising patterns, like how he landed in the water. It takes a bit for the bruising to happen after death. Of course the bloating may distort the bruising also and any hematomas may not be as obvious.

Who in the family owned a boat? Does anyone remember the family renting a boat? Who would normally go fishing? Did they take him with them when they went?

We have a place in Florida and fishing piers abound. Many go out early in the morning and a lot are elderly so they would be perfect marks for some lowlife to rob.

 

[GatorFL]

Missed or forgot that this UID man's death is being investigated as a homicide..
https://www.wptv.com/news/region-c-...-case-homicide-in-palm-beach-county-from-2003
Apr 30, 2019 rbbm.
''Detectives said he was found floating in the Atlantic Ocean, approximately five miles east of the Boynton Beach Inlet, on Sept. 7, 2003.

PBSO's Violent Crimes Division is investigating his death as a homicide.
An autopsy did not reveal any trauma to his body, and the cause of death is unknown.''

Photo by: Palm Beach County Sheriff's Office

Photo by: Palm Beach County Sheriff's Office

Yes I was denied the case file since it is an active criminal investigation.

 

[madamx]

Do you think his hair is dyed? Usually redheads are the first to go gray.

Yes I thought the same thing when I saw his photo. The hair looks dyed. My friends father had similar hair with the thinning on top and the combover. He would dye it and at first it was darker and then it would turn that rust orange color.

 

[apearn]

Two things I'm wondering about: why is his lower clothing undone like that? why is his entire face discolored compared to the rest of his skin?

I know the blood pools after death but it's not uniform on him. He looks like maybe he was chocked or his chest was compressed at death.