CANADA Canada - Alberta, Banff National Park, WhtMale 19-65, 3242UMAB, Rickets as child, Jul’98

[dotr]

‘It’s solvable’: Banff RCMP hoping to identify man’s remains recovered decades ago | The Star
Jan 25 2022
''The skeleton of a Caucasian man between the age of 19 and 35 was discovered by a tour guide there in 1998. Police have been unable to identify the man, despite a number of clues found with his body.

Investigators believe the man was likely closer to 25 years old, was about 5 feet 10 inches tall, had rickets as a child and probably died at least two years before he was found on the backside of Sulphur Mountain about four kilometres south of the town of Banff.


RCMP say DNA from the remains has been uploaded into the national databank. Potential missing person’s files have been cross referenced and ruled out by either DNA or dental records. And there are not any known outstanding missing person’s cases that match the case.''

''There were several items located in the area of the remains, including keys from a 1970s or ‘80s Chrysler with a War Amps key tag, pictures, and a black wallet with “Amity” written in gold letters, but no identification.''

''Police also recovered a tattered photo in the wallet with a Quebec address on the back, but that hasn’t yielded anything either.

“It was a near a seniors’ home or a hospital,” Rice said.'

 

[dotr]

Suggestion? rbbm
Police seek help locating man missing since 1996 | Simcoe Reformer

''Norfolk OPP are revisiting the case of Michael David Hart. He was reported missing in August, 1996, after his family had not heard from him for three months.

“It is believed he travelled to the Alberta, Saskatchewan or the British Columbia area searching for work as a skilled tradesman,” Acting Sgt. Ed Sanchuk said Thursday in a news release.''

Ws thread
CANADA - Canada- Michael David Hart, 35, Langton, Ontario, Possibly travelled West, 15 Feb. 1996 (websleuths.com)

 

[CastlesBurning]

IMO the rickets part should be a major clue - it's pretty rare in modern times. A quick search told me there are only about 2.9 cases per 100,000 children, and that the majority are in Ontario. That would be a further link for Michael David Hart.

Rickets still a problem in some parts of Canada

 

[MadMcGoo]

3242UMAB

https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/calgary/remains-man-found-banff-23-years-ago-still-mystery-1.6326664


Date of Discovery: July 11, 1998
Location of Discovery: Banff, Alberta, Canada
Estimated Date of Death: 6 months to 5 years prior
State of Remains: Unknown
Cause of Death: Unknown

Estimated Age: 19-65 years old
Race: White
Sex: Male
Height: 176 to 183 cm (5'9" to 6'0")
Weight: Unknown
Hair Color: Unknown
Eye Color: Unknown

Dentals: Available. Multiple fillings present.
Fingerprints: Unknown.
DNA: Unknown.

Circumstances of Discovery
The decedent was found on Sulphur Mountain in Banff National Park on July 11, 1998.

Investigating Agency(s)
Agency Name: Alberta Office of the Chief Medical Examiner
Agency Phone Number: 780-427-4987
Agency Case Number: 0035-6098

Agency Name: Crime Stoppers
Agency Phone Number: 1-800-222-TIPS(8477)
Online tip submission: here

Agency Name: National Centre for Missing Persons and Unidentified Remains
Agency E-Mail: canadasmissing-disparuscanada(at)rcmp-grc.gc.ca
Agency Case Number: 2018071052

Information Source(s)
Canada's Missing

 

[snowgoose]

IMO the rickets part should be a major clue - it's pretty rare in modern times. A quick search told me there are only about 2.9 cases per 100,000 children, and that the majority are in Ontario. That would be a further link for Michael David Hart.

Rickets still a problem in some parts of Canada

It was rare by the time that article was written in 2007, but still fairly common in the mid 20th century. John Doe's childhood would have been in the 1960s/70s.

 

[victoriarobinson642]

It was rare by the time that article was written in 2007, but still fairly common in the mid 20th century. John Doe's childhood would have been in the 1960s/70s.

It was especially common in the further Northern parts of the world.

 

[Loralee]

I grew up in Northern Manitoba in the early 70's and I don't recall any friends with cases of rickets (or the residual problems that would display afterward). Everything was fortified with Vitamin D by that point. If he was closer to 35 (born in 1963) then it might be more common, but my understanding is that it was something that was of higher prevalence pre WWII and in the provinces where they were slower to adopt vitamin fortification in margarine, cereal, etc.

 

[dotr]

rbbm.
Vitamin D–deficiency rickets among children in Canada (nih.gov)
''Vitamin D–deficiency rickets is persistent in Canada, particularly among children who reside in the north and among infants with darker skin who are breast-fed without appropriate vitamin D supplementation. Since there were no reported cases of breast-fed children having received regular vitamin D (400 IU/d) from birth who developed rickets, the current guidelines for rickets prevention can be effective but are not being consistently implemented. The exception appears to be infants, including those fed standard infant formula, born to mothers with a profound vitamin D deficiency, in which case the current guidelines may not be adequate to rescue infants from the vitamin D-deficient state.''

'' Despite numerous preventive strategies, vitamin D deficiency has remained a global health problem among children. Developed countries such as Canada, Australia, the United Kingdom and the United States have not been exempt from this problem.1–4''

Study finds rickets still exists | CTV News
2007 rbbm.
''Ward found that children with darker skin and those who had been breast-fed without vitamin D supplementation were most susceptible. The incidence rates were highest among children residing in the North, but 55 per cent of the cases were identified in Ontario.''

 

[dotr]

I grew up in Northern Manitoba in the early 70's and I don't recall any friends with cases of rickets (or the residual problems that would display afterward). Everything was fortified with Vitamin D by that point. If he was closer to 35 (born in 1963) then it might be more common, but my understanding is that it was something that was of higher prevalence pre WWII and in the provinces where they were slower to adopt vitamin fortification in margarine, cereal, etc.

Welcome to Ws @Loralee, thanks for chiming in!

 

[dotr]

rbbm.
Banff RCMP hope to identify decades-old human remains found on Sulphur Mountain | CTV News

Banff RCMP said two composite sketches of the human remains were completed in 2001 and 2018 in an effort to show what the man may have looked like

''The remains were discovered by a tour guide on the back side of the mountain, accessed via Cosmic Ray Road, on July 11, 1998.''

''RCMP said several items were found in the area of the remains, including:

• A Chrysler key ('70s to '80s, no vehicle was recovered),
• A T.B. Vets tag with the Arms of B.C. (records were not kept prior to 1997), and
• A black leather wallet with the word "Amity" on it in gold letters.

RCMP said these keys were found near the human remains.RCMP said the wallet had pictures it in, including one with faint markings on the reverse side that included the address 524 6 ieme ave Nord, St-Antoine, J7Z-5H9.

These pictures were found near human remains in Banff in 1998. (Submitted)Banff RCMP are asking anyone with information on the man's identity to call them at 403-763-6600 or to contact Crime Stoppers anonymously.''

War Amps key tag insert. (Photo supplied by Alberta RCMP)
FWIW..
About Us | TB Vets

What Happened to Rolfs & Amity Wallets? [History & Review] (allthewallets.com)


© 2022 TomTom, © OpenStreetMap
6e Avenue, St-Jérôme, Quebec
bing.com/maps
524 6 ieme ave Nord, St-Antoine, J7Z-5H9

Banff RCMP looking to identify human remains found nearly 24 years ago | Canoe.Com
''Rice said the address was traced to Quebec but the trail went cold.
“There are lots of people invested in unsolved cases who might be highly educated in a specific area. Like with the address, we’ve tracked it down and exhausted all avenues, but somebody may know something obsolete — it could be the tip that puts us in the right direction of where we could locate this person’s family,” Rice said.

Despite having DNA and dental records from the man’s remains, Rice said there hasn’t been a match in the national DNA data bank or missing persons files.''

 

[dotr]

Sorry for serial posting but have to note this too.. Due to vitamin D deficiency, Rickets is associated with TB.
Close to St Jerome (the address found w UID) there is/was a tuberculosis hospital in Ste Agathe, Quebec, wondering if the UID spent any time or visited somebody there?
imo, speculation.fwiw.

Vitamin D and tuberculosis: a multicenter study in children - PubMed (nih.gov)

LAURENTIAN CHEST HOSPITAL, STE-AGATHE | Laurentian Heritage WebMagazine (quebecheritageweb.com)

 

[Paisley_in_Ottawa]

I saw this in the paper a few days ago, and this made me curious. This man was most likely from Quebec, and these are probably family photos. I have a gut feeling about this missing man (Allen Robert Foy), missing since 1972:

Canada's Missing | Case details (rcmp-grc.gc.ca)

They even found his Chevy near the Dorval airport years later (maybe the Chevy these keys were for...?). He said he was going fishing, but maybe just left town and Quebec altogether. I see a physical similarity, and his age and height is spot on. The article I read said that the UID probably died a few years before 1998, but the heading of the article was that "decades old" remains were found:
Banff RCMP hope to identify decades-old human remains found on Sulphur Mountain | CTV News

It's very possible his DNA isn't in the system - the Canadian DNA databank for missing persons has not been around long (years only) and I'd be surprised if more than a minority of the missing persons in the RCMP Missing databank had DNA in the system.

I've done nothing on this, but when I saw this thread, I thought I'd jump in. I could call the Banff RCMP number listed in the article...

 

[dotr]

I saw this in the paper a few days ago, and this made me curious. This man was most likely from Quebec, and these are probably family photos. I have a gut feeling about this missing man (Allen Robert Foy), missing since 1972:

Canada's Missing | Case details (rcmp-grc.gc.ca)

They even found his Chevy near the Dorval airport years later (maybe the Chevy these keys were for...?). He said he was going fishing, but maybe just left town and Quebec altogether. I see a physical similarity, and his age and height is spot on. The article I read said that the UID probably died a few years before 1998, but the heading of the article was that "decades old" remains were found:
Banff RCMP hope to identify decades-old human remains found on Sulphur Mountain | CTV News

It's very possible his DNA isn't in the system - the Canadian DNA databank for missing persons has not been around long (years only) and I'd be surprised if more than a minority of the missing persons in the RCMP Missing databank had DNA in the system.

I've done nothing on this, but when I saw this thread, I thought I'd jump in. I could call the Banff RCMP number listed in the article...

Thanks for chiming in with great suggestion!
Allen Robert Foy

UID Male

1/1

 

[Paisley_in_Ottawa]

Quick notes: although his RCMP missing file lists him as "Allen", he is referred to as "Alain" in the details - and the second is the more likely spelling. Also, there are no articles in French (or English for that matter) online regarding his disappearance in 1972. There are also no good leads in Ancestry - and very few submissions under "Foy", which is surprising as this is a relatively common name. That tells me that Ancestry isn't accessed or used a lot in Quebec.

 

[Paisley_in_Ottawa]

Rickets were not identified as being linked to Vitamin D deficiency in Canada until 1961. This UID would have been a child before this time, so I'm not surprised about the childhood rickets:

In 1961, Dr. Charles Scriver, a research pioneer at the Montreal Children's Hospital, linked rickets with a Vitamin D deficiency. This discovery led to the routine addition of Vitamin D to bottled milk, a move that has virtually eliminated nutritional rickets in Canadian children.​

 

[Paisley_in_Ottawa]

The address is a single family home (can find on Google maps...). There may have been a TB hospital nearby, but these pictures are probably of the residents of that house. The house does not currently have a registered landline, and has not been sold in recent years.

 

[Loralee]

I'm going to show my 'anal-retentive' streak... sigh!

Rickets were not identified as being linked to Vitamin D deficiency in Canada until 1961. This UID would have been a child before this time, so I'm not surprised about the childhood rickets

If the UID was 35 in 1996 (they believe his remains were 2 years old at the time) then he would have been born in 1961 and been raised with Vitamin D fortification in food. But, they believed he was closer to 25 years of age, with a birth year closer to 1971.

I'm only mentioning it because narrowing the search range may save someone a little time.

Also, @Paisley_in_Ottawa I believe the article referenced "decades old" because it was posted very recently, and the remains were found in 1998 (more than 20 years ago).

There are also no good leads in Ancestry - and very few submissions under "Foy", which is surprising as this is a relatively common name. That tells me that Ancestry isn't accessed or used a lot in Quebec.

I'll work on this genealogy profile for Allen/Alain Robert Foy and see if I can pull together some clues.

 

[dotr]

Noting that some links suggest that the UID was about 25 yrs old. The one posted upthread states that the UID could have been up to 65 yrs old.
3242UMAB (doenetwork.org)
Estimated Age: 19-65 years old
Race: White
Sex: Male
Height: 176 to 183 cm (5'9" to 6'0")

 

[Loralee]

Is there a thread for Allen Robert Foy on websleuths that I'm not finding? If so, I can transfer this information over there.

Alain Foy was in the Top 10 Most Wanted criminals in Quebec in 1975 with the same photo and description in the missing. He's wanted for loan sharking.

The list is on page 6 of Le petit journal, 1975-12-21, Collections de BAnQ.
BAnQ numérique

Also, page 46, (left hand side), "Cautionnement accordé", Le soleil, 1970-08-19, Collections de BAnQ
BAnQ numérique

The article says he was living in St-Hubert in August 1970

 

[Loralee]

The one posted upthread states that the UID could have been up to 65 yrs old.
3242UMAB (doenetwork.org)

I see, you're 100% correct. Thank you for pointing that out. Appreciate it.