UK UK - Bristol, WhtMale 571UMUK, 25-35, fell from Clifton bridge, May'96

[MelmothTheLost]

Old student card suggests he might have studied in UK. Also he had in possession - "Thomas Moores 'Utopia' book, no outer cover and 'West Glamorgan County Council' on the front page" - long ago when I was checking details it showed that that council building no longer exists. I wonder if he was studying somewhere around Swansea area or was traveling from that area to Bristol and then planned to go further.

West Glamorgan would suggest Cardiff rather than Swansea.

I was thinking further about the student card. Was it one recognisably issued by the NUS or by a university? If the latter, I wonder whether the colour of the cover might help narrow down the institution which issued it.

 

[MelmothTheLost]

I see that despite this chap being found pretty soon after his death, none of the official sources mention fingerprints, dental details or DNA being on file. Even if 1996 was too early for DNA to be taken routinely surely the fingerprints were taken and a dental chart drawn up. If not, it's about time they dug him up for dental charting and DNA and isotope testing. This really should be so solvable.

 

[dotr]

And this is original link where Porchlight used information from. Quite interesting read about Cliffton Bridge, people who worked there, its victims and survivors.

Bristol's Suicide Bridge

http://www.fluidr.com/photos/brizzlebornandbred/2042386519

Very interesting link, thanks for posting it, this story was particularly moving.

The miracle fall -The luckiest children alive. . . those were little Elsie Brown and her 12-year-old sister Ruby who survived a spectacular murder attempt by their father on the Clifton Suspension Bridge in September, 1896.

Charles Brown, a Birmingham grocer, was bankrupt and losing his mind. He had five children and could no longer support his family. In despair he took the two girls all the way to Bristol and to the Suspension Bridge.

The wretched children were forced to walk up and down in the darkness, howling winds and pouring rain for an hour until their maddened father suddenly seized first Ruby and then Elsie and hurled them over the parapet.

The girls’ guardian angels must have been on overtime that dreadful night. For the winds were so violent that great up-currents of air somehow caught the falling bodies and cushioned their falls.

And a further chance in a million. The girls both splashed into the murky waters of the River Avon within a few feet of a passing pilot boat. It was the work of a moment to drag the terrified youngsters to safety.

Both Elsie and Ruby suffered nasty bruises and injuries and were kept in hospital. But both were back on their feet within days.

 

[webnut]

Can anyone place the side-on photo of Mark (the one showing his left side/ear) next to the full face of John Doe please.

Ears are very distinctive, no two alike. A comparison of that feature might help.

I'm hopeless with copying photos, so sorry can't do it myself. TIA.


eta.... The photo in Al Ka's post #3 shows JD's left ear well.

Here it is

 

[Janeway]

Probably a bit of a long shot, but do you think this could be him:

Denis Walsh

(left pic and 2nd from the right show what he looked like just before he disappeared. The black&white pic is an age-progression sketch to age 30. The right pic is older and shows what he looked like before he grew out his hair & beard)

From his Doe Network site:

• Missing since March 9, 1996 from Limerick, Ireland
• Height and Weight at Time of Disappearance: 6'0".
• Distinguishing Characteristics: White male. Fair hair; blue eyes. Medium build.

Walsh was last seen at home in Limerick, Ireland on March 9, 1996. He left the house one afternoon and never returned. Despite items on TV and in the newspapers, where some suspected sightings were reported, nothing has been heard from him since. In the first six months after his disappearance, there were a number of reported sightings of Dennis some around Limerick and also in Ennis and Dublin. A person like him was also reported boarding the Isle of Man Ferry at Belfast. But nothing has come so far from these sightings and there have not been any more sightings since.

http://www.doenetwork.org/cases-int/1570dmirl.html


I also found some more info about his case here:

"Denis Walsh was 23 years old when he vanished in March 1996. The youngest of five children, he left the family home at Caherdavin Heights on a Saturday morning and his family have not seen or heard from him since. On the day he disappeared he was later sighted in a wine bar in Limerick city. The following Wednesday there was a reported sighting of him in a coffee shop in Limerick, where a witness thought she saw him reading a book about Buddhism. A bus driver said it was possible Denis might have later taken a bus to the Ballysimon area of Limerick.[...]

Two months after his disappearance, Denis's case featured on Crimeline, and a man from Belfast rang the Gardaí to say that he believed he recognised Denis. He said that on 9 May a man matching Denis's description had arrived at the Sea Cat terminal at Donegal Quay in Belfast enquiring about a sailing to the Isle of Man. The man bought a ticket for the next morning's crossing, but subsequent enquiries suggested that he hadn't travelled on the ferry.[...]

Denis did not own a car, so if he had travelled to Belfast, he must have used public transport or got a lift. There has been no sign of Denis Walsh since 1996.[...]

At the time of his disappearance, Denis had been studying economics in Limerick. He also wrote poetry, and sometimes signed his name 'Daithí Breathnach'. His family have made enquiries at New Age travellers encampments and also considered if he might have been enticed into a sect in Co. Fermanagh.[...]

'Our son may have stayed in Ireland, or he could have eventually travelled to the Isle of Man or to England, or anywhere else.' [...]

There is no suggestion of foul play in relation to Denis Walsh's disappearance."


He's the same height as Bristol John Doe, has the same eye and hair colour and hair length. He was a student of economics at the University of Limerick, so I'm sure he had a student ID card. The timeline checks out, he disappeared 2 months before the body was found. Someone thought they saw him in Belfast at a ferry terminal on 9 May 1996, buying a ticket to the Isle of Man for the next day. Even if he didn't take the ferry, he somehow could have travelled to mainland Britain (Liverpool?), down the Welsh coast past West Clamorgan (where he got the Thomas More book) to Bristol (body found 19 May). As an Irishman he was probably catholic which could explain the bible. Also his parents feared he might have joined a cult and someone thought they saw him reading a book about Buddhism, so spiritual stuff must have interested him. It sounds like he was travelling around and had no permanent home or work which could explain some of the items Bristol Doe had with him (household stuff, toiletries, umbrella etc. indicate that he was living in the street; the sign sounds like he was begging for money).

I think a lot speaks for Denis, OTOH, I find it hard to recognise him in the Doe photo, maybe because his appearance changed so much. I think the age-progression sketch is the one that resembles the unknown man the most but we don't know how accurate it is. Denis is also a bit too young and we don't know for sure if he ever left Ireland.

 

[Tulessa]

Here it is

View attachment 100100

Everything is different, even the ears. The eyes, the nose and look at the lips. IMO.

 

[jessie]

Probably a bit of a long shot, but do you think this could be him:

Denis Walsh

(left pic and 2nd from the right show what he looked like just before he disappeared. The black&white pic is an age-progression sketch to age 30. The right pic is older and shows what he looked like before he grew out his hair & beard)

From his Doe Network site:

• Missing since March 9, 1996 from Limerick, Ireland
• Height and Weight at Time of Disappearance: 6'0".
• Distinguishing Characteristics: White male. Fair hair; blue eyes. Medium build.

Walsh was last seen at home in Limerick, Ireland on March 9, 1996. He left the house one afternoon and never returned. Despite items on TV and in the newspapers, where some suspected sightings were reported, nothing has been heard from him since. In the first six months after his disappearance, there were a number of reported sightings of Dennis some around Limerick and also in Ennis and Dublin. A person like him was also reported boarding the Isle of Man Ferry at Belfast. But nothing has come so far from these sightings and there have not been any more sightings since.

http://www.doenetwork.org/cases-int/1570dmirl.html


I also found some more info about his case here:

"Denis Walsh was 23 years old when he vanished in March 1996. The youngest of five children, he left the family home at Caherdavin Heights on a Saturday morning and his family have not seen or heard from him since. On the day he disappeared he was later sighted in a wine bar in Limerick city. The following Wednesday there was a reported sighting of him in a coffee shop in Limerick, where a witness thought she saw him reading a book about Buddhism. A bus driver said it was possible Denis might have later taken a bus to the Ballysimon area of Limerick.[...]

Two months after his disappearance, Denis's case featured on Crimeline, and a man from Belfast rang the Gardaí to say that he believed he recognised Denis. He said that on 9 May a man matching Denis's description had arrived at the Sea Cat terminal at Donegal Quay in Belfast enquiring about a sailing to the Isle of Man. The man bought a ticket for the next morning's crossing, but subsequent enquiries suggested that he hadn't travelled on the ferry.[...]

Denis did not own a car, so if he had travelled to Belfast, he must have used public transport or got a lift. There has been no sign of Denis Walsh since 1996.[...]

At the time of his disappearance, Denis had been studying economics in Limerick. He also wrote poetry, and sometimes signed his name 'Daithí Breathnach'. His family have made enquiries at New Age travellers encampments and also considered if he might have been enticed into a sect in Co. Fermanagh.[...]

'Our son may have stayed in Ireland, or he could have eventually travelled to the Isle of Man or to England, or anywhere else.' [...]

There is no suggestion of foul play in relation to Denis Walsh's disappearance."


He's the same height as Bristol John Doe, has the same eye and hair colour and hair length. He was a student of economics at the University of Limerick, so I'm sure he had a student ID card. The timeline checks out, he disappeared 2 months before the body was found. Someone thought they saw him in Belfast at a ferry terminal on 9 May 1996, buying a ticket to the Isle of Man for the next day. Even if he didn't take the ferry, he somehow could have travelled to mainland Britain (Liverpool?), down the Welsh coast past West Clamorgan (where he got the Thomas More book) to Bristol (body found 19 May). As an Irishman he was probably catholic which could explain the bible. Also his parents feared he might have joined a cult and someone thought they saw him reading a book about Buddhism, so spiritual stuff must have interested him. It sounds like he was travelling around and had no permanent home or work which could explain some of the items Bristol Doe had with him (household stuff, toiletries, umbrella etc. indicate that he was living in the street; the sign sounds like he was begging for money).

I think a lot speaks for Denis, OTOH, I find it hard to recognise him in the Doe photo, maybe because his appearance changed so much. I think the age-progression sketch is the one that resembles the unknown man the most but we don't know how accurate it is. Denis is also a bit too young and we don't know for sure if he ever left Ireland.

Just adding this
Link for photos on here http://www.websleuths.com/forums/showthread.php?262635-Ireland-Dennis-Walsh-23-Limerick-19-Mar-1996

 

[jessie]

Search Results
Image result for dennis walsh missing Wow I think I managed to post a pic :blushing: I think there is quite

quite a similarity with John Doe. Janeway you may be on to something here hopefully.

 

[Janeway]

thanks Jessie for posting the pic, they somehow don't show up in my post, sorry about that. I'll try again with the others:

I hope you can see them now. again, the long haired ones show him what he last looked like, b&w is age-progression, the pic Jessie posted shows him at a younger age (if his student ID photo was already a couple of years old, he probably would have looked like that one in it).

 

[jessie]

Just seen this article which mentions this John Doe, as well as others. No more details than those Al Ka has posted I expect, but posting it here for interest.

Avon and Somerset Constabulary have 10 unidentified dead bodies on their books and no idea who they are.

The story of Neil Dovestone, the man who was mysteriously found dead on Saddleworth Moor in Greater Manchester last December, captured the public's imagination - but it seems his case is by no means unique according to the UK Missing Persons Bureau's database.

There are currently 548 unidentified bodies on the database accompanied with the kinds of chilling details normally reserved for detective novels.

As many as 10 of these bodies are on the books of Avon and Somerset Constabulary with the most recent one found in June 2002.

On the 20th day of that month the decomposed body of a man believed to be aged between 20 and 30 was found under cliff edge on the beach at Redcliffe Bay.

Other than the fact that the man was white European in ethnicity there was nothing on the body that could help identify him.

All of the 10 bodies were found in the sea or rivers and there doesn't appear to be any guarantee that any of them will ever be identified with the remains of one man remaining on Avon and Somerset Constabulary's cold case list since 1971.

**GRAPHIC IMAGE WARNING: Some may find the images below disturbing or upsetting.**

Read more at http://www.somersetlive.co.uk/the-1...9646082-detail/story.html#2eKBYHdraQDmliHJ.99

 

[Ellmau]

He definitely looks similar, and combined with the timeline that looks like a promising lead.

 

[Al Ka]

By the way Janeway :wagon: to Websleuths

 

[Al Ka]

Just seen this article which mentions this John Doe, as well as others. No more details than those Al Ka has posted I expect, but posting it here for interest.
Read more at http://www.somersetlive.co.uk/the-1...9646082-detail/story.html#2eKBYHdraQDmliHJ.99

Wow, this is actually quite good article and just 2 days old!!! I had no idea that there are actually so many UIDs around River Avon in Brisol. Also a bit surprised reporter published post mortem photos publicly, but really great news that this and other cases having some new air time. I hope we have inspired them a bit :dance:.

Also curious what database reporter copied UIDs information from as even though all of them are listed at http://missingpersons.police.uk/en/result/lnSN44F some little details he/she published are just not there.

 

[Janeway]

Thanks for the welcome, Al Ka

I've submitted Denis as possible match on Doe Network. If nothing comes of it we at least know it's not him.

I also think it's good that there's more publicity about the Does. The pictures may not be great to look at but I think the UIDs are more likely to get identified if their cases are accessible to as many people as possible.

A thing I meant to ask about our Bristol Doe: it says that he "fell" off the bridge but from what I understand this bridge is a suicide hotspot and he'd destroyed his ID, so it's likely that he jumped? Do they treat it as an accident because no one actually saw him and there's no note or why do they say he fell?

 

[webnut]

Crikey, that place didnt last well, by the 80's it was a run down ice rink and cinema, not sure what is there now. Absolutely nothing to do with John Doe though.

 

[webnut]

Bristol John Doe

Gender Male
Age Range 25 to 35
Ethnicity White European
Height (cm) 185cm = 6'0"
Build Medium
Date found 19 May 1996
Estimated Death
Body or remains Body

Circumstances

Body found on the bank of the River Avon. Believed he fell from Clifton suspension bridge.

Hair Light brown - Collar length
Facial hair
Eye colour Blue

Clothing

Jacket - Leather - Black

Shirt/blouse - Sweatshirt - Black - With 3 button and collar

Trousers - Jeans - Blue - "lee riders"

Footwear - Boots - Brown

Hose - Socks - White

Headwear - Checked - Cloth cap

Underwear - Underpants - Blue - Navy

Headwear - Baseball - Black - Logo on it

Underwear - Underpants - Green

Hose - Socks - Grey

Possessions

Silk cut cigarettes, Paperback book - 'The Greatest Batman Stories', Great Britain A-Z map, Thomas Moores 'Utopia' book, no outer cover and 'West Glamorgan County Council' on the front page, Holy Bible, London shopper, Guide map Eurohike Adventure, Black sleeping bag, Cardboard with handwritten message 'Sleeping rough, thank you', Green towel, Blue umbrella, Black corkscrew, 'Barclays' blank giro slip, 3 x disposable razors, Shaving stick, 'Lynx' body spray, Yellow toothbrush, Tin opener, Red penny whistle, White cup, £6.61 cash, Passport size photo

http://missingpersons.police.uk/en/case/03-001329/K8LF44F
http://www.doenetwork.org/cases-int/571umuk.html

I have been in touch with Christine Forth-Eglon, the mother of missing Mark Forth-Eglon and she has looked at the photo of our UID and says it's not Mark. Keep looking guys.

 

[dotr]

Bumping with this international missing persons link.
http://www.missingpersonsdata.com/var/interpol/cache/ws/2014-65246/missing-GetPicture-59216398.jpg

 

[jessie]

I think it is really good find, even though tip of the Mark nose seems much wider wile he smiles everything else facially seems to align really good, eyebrows, size of forehead, lips and even chin. On first look I have thought Mark has ginger hair but Doe net say brown. I would not worry much about inch height difference.

Let's keep in mind that they mentioned that John Doe photo is from old student card. If he was in his late 20s - early 30, photo could have been already 5-10 years old at that time.

I am trying to find out a bit more about Mark Andrew Forth-Eglon circumstances of disappearance as lets just say "he is from Birmingham and might be in New Zealand" is not really sufficient.

I have seen appeal to him from his mum and later on from his friend, but I won't link it here as they list their personal phone numbers there. Mark has daughter and son and shortly before disappearance climbing holiday in Switzerland is mentioned. So far I have not found if he came back or not from mentioned holidays. They have family in NZ, again it is not clear if due to this they think he might have traveled there. Somewhere else it is mentioned that he usually dressed well and was well mannered. (all details found are just hearsay and not the facts from official sources)

If anyone finds any solid information about him from the time of the disappearance or circumstances please feel free to post it here, with link to source.

I am no doubt wide of the mark, but I have to ask if this latest news article could have a connection to Mark Forth-Eglon?

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-northamptonshire-38017409

Clay head appeal fails to identify 2002 Northampton bushes body

A clay model of the man's head was released in 2014 in an effort to solve the mystery
A clay model depicting the face of a man found dead in bushes 14 years ago has failed to help identify him, police have said.
A number of items were also found with the body, including a beige sleeping bag, a black Equinox fleece jacket, a blue Viale work wear top, a green and brown Jet Flow Torille 40 Outbound rucksack, cigarette lighters, a purple comb and hairbrush, a glasses case and lens cloth and a damaged black and white photograph.
The man was wearing a pair of blue and grey New Balance trainers, white socks, navy Petroleum track-suit bottoms, a pair of boxer shorts, a long-sleeved Polo-style top and a short-sleeved Polo-style top.

 

[LucyOso]

This seems like it should be so easy to solve :-(

 

[MelmothTheLost]

Wondering why he bothered to keep the school photo if he was going to scratch off the details, why not toss the whole thing?

Yes, agreed. Even with the dates and other details scratched off there could be some clues to be gained, eg from the colour of the union membership card. Mine at Leeds was navy blue, but I imagine other universities and polytechnics used other colours which would help to narrow things down. And if there was something left of the crest or coat of arms on the front, it may be possible to match it up to a particular institution.

The uid wrote " sleeping rough " which to the best of my knowledge, is a UK term - in N.A, one would probably write " homeless "

Not quite the same thing. In the UK you can be regarded as homeless if you are, for example, kipping on a friend's sofa for a few weeks but cannot stay there longterm. Sleeping rough is therefore a different thing.