Identified! IN - Henry County, Male UP, 17-24, Found Behind Gas Station, Oct'03 - Daniel Diaz

I noticed that that this John Doe actually resembles Jose Berrios of the Minnesota Twins! Yes? No? Maybe so?



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I'm glad you've taken an interest in this case. It got my attention a couple years ago. I checked the spotty (and often useless) missing persons sites in various South American countries. I reached out to the pastor who did the kid's funeral and we had a pleasant exchange but it didn't really clear anything up (other than apparently there are some really good folks in that town). When I look at his pictures I want to figure out what happened to him. I don't think that the case got very much press (as best I can tell) in 2003 and my boss is a former policeman from that area and he didn't even remember the case. Hell, the pastor hadn't even thought of it in almost 14 years when I emailed him.
 
I'm glad you've taken an interest in this case. It got my attention a couple years ago. I checked the spotty (and often useless) missing persons sites in various South American countries. I reached out to the pastor who did the kid's funeral and we had a pleasant exchange but it didn't really clear anything up (other than apparently there are some really good folks in that town). When I look at his pictures I want to figure out what happened to him. I don't think that the case got very much press (as best I can tell) in 2003 and my boss is a former policeman from that area and he didn't even remember the case. Hell, the pastor hadn't even thought of it in almost 14 years when I emailed him.

Thanks so much! I don’t know...I feel like this Doe is American and is a citizen. However, I think he may have been Puerto Rican or Cuban heritage.

The officer with the Henry County Sheriffs Office wasn’t willing to work with us to help get this case out there and refused to provide further info, like what he may have purchased at Walmart and info on the car he was “seen” driving. I’m wondering if there are stills from the cameras at Walmart that they claim exist of the footage of John Doe. Until more info comes out, I think the Walmart story may be a crock.

Unfortunately, with so little info, there’s not much to this story other than that this Doe was found shot in the head behind an abandoned gas station. The police officers at the scene were apparently ruled out as being the murderers and that there is belief that this murder was gang related.
 
I wanted to bounce an idea off of you. I'm in the middle of a job transfer and have a lot of free time in my office. What if the short stature is a symptom? I'm also thinking he had a prognathic jaw. He would have been around the average age for corrective surgery. If it's symptomatic of a genetic disorder then there were likely other family members with it and fairly rare enough to narrow it down.
 
He removed the braces himself?! Wouldn't that be horribly painful? Also, what sort of specialized dental work involves wiring a jaw shut? People I've met that have had to have that were either in bad accidents or beat up.

it would be interesting to know how long they thought his jaw was wired shut. that is what happens when you get beaten and your jaw broken. if it had been recent, perhaps whoever beat him up finished the job. maybe when he was beaten, he was taken to the ER and admitted and had that work done, and then never returned (lack of insurance) and tried to take it off himself
 
That is a good question especially from 50 miles away. Has anyone tried to reach a coroner. His post-mortem face is covered in putty.

I reached out to the HCSO a while back. He had nothing for us. The officer who I communicated with, Ed Manning, said that everything on the boards and NamUs are accurate. I want to get him on my upcoming podcast soon so that way this case can reach some kind of airwave. If not, I’ll probably work with what I have and talk about the case. He said that the photos in NamUs and the NCMEC were the only photos allowed; however it looks like Doe Network has a sketch done by an amateur sketch artist and looks like one of his post Morten autopsy photos were used in the commissioning.
 
I really wish I lived closer to Indiana...I could do some hardcore sleuthing on this case and dig up more clues with old newspaper articles like I’ve been doing the last few months in another case.
 
That is a good question especially from 50 miles away. Has anyone tried to reach a coroner. His post-mortem face is covered in putty.

The file is the photo from Doe Network. Though it’s a reconstruction, probably as close as we will get to the real thing.
 

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The file is the photo from Doe Network. Though it’s a reconstruction, probably as close as we will get to the real thing.

I've seen that reconstruction on Doe Network but I'm not sure of its origin. His post-mortem photos just don't "say" much to me.

Missing Person Case

I found this case earlier. After looking at the post-mortems I thought our Doe might be mixed race. NamUs doesn't have a mixed category, so I looked under "black" and found this case. The weight is way off, by about 80 pounds, but the older the records the more likely data entry was bad. The height, probable race, and basketball gear - especially the Connecticut association - make me raise an eyebrow. I contacted that police dept to see if we could get a picture.
 
I've seen that reconstruction on Doe Network but I'm not sure of its origin. His post-mortem photos just don't "say" much to me.

Missing Person Case

I found this case earlier. After looking at the post-mortems I thought our Doe might be mixed race. NamUs doesn't have a mixed category, so I looked under "black" and found this case. The weight is way off, by about 80 pounds, but the older the records the more likely data entry was bad. The height, probable race, and basketball gear - especially the Connecticut association - make me raise an eyebrow. I contacted that police dept to see if we could get a picture.
This is very interesting! Please update us when you hear back from them. I don’t think just anyone wear UConn clothing unless you happen to be a hardcore fan of Women’s Basketball! This is worth checking out.
 
This is very interesting! Please update us when you hear back from them. I don’t think just anyone wear UConn clothing unless you happen to be a hardcore fan of Women’s Basketball! This is worth checking out.

The UConn women's team is wildly popular all across the region, even up into MA, so a CT link makes him jump way up to the top of my radar...
 
The UConn women's team is wildly popular all across the region, even up into MA, so a CT link makes him jump way up to the top of my radar...
I got to work with the UCONN Womens BB Team in 2017 as their driver...Coach Geno was super cool, but a quiet guy. He sat behind me instead of the passenger side of the bus like most coaches do.

Sorry I am now just seeing this post. Visiting to provide some updates!
 
I recently discovered the power of Newspapers.com and I created an account, and I couldn't believe how useful it was! With that said, I was able to uncover additional details on this John Doe's story. One set is from the Star Press out of Muncie, Indiana and the rest are from the Indianapolis Star. Attached is the clippings from the Press.
 

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