Summary
In July 1979, the remains of an unidentified individual were found in a debris pile at a dead end road in Covert Township, a civil township located in Van Buren County, Michigan. It was determined that the remains were that of an adult male whose age was estimated to be between 33 and 69 years. The man’s height was estimated to be between 5'9" and 6'5"l. The man was found wearing an electric Timex watch and a silver chain that had an anchor/ship’s wheel charm and a gold medallion. On the front of the medallion was the face of Jesus and on the back was a Spanish phrase that translated to “Our Lady of Guadalupe - pray for us.” Without any identifying documents, the man became known as Van Buren John Doe.
Since the discovery of the unknown man’s remains, investigators diligently pursued various leads about his identity. To help visualize the man's appearance during his life, an artist rendering was created and released to the public in hopes that it would generate new leads about the man’s identity. Details of the case were entered into the National Missing and Unidentified Persons System (NamUs) as UP17351. Despite the exhaustive efforts of law enforcement, the man’s identity could not be determined and the case remained unsolved for 45 years.
In 2022, the Michigan State Police teamed with Othram to leverage advanced DNA testing and genetic genealogy to develop investigative leads in hopes of identifying the man. Forensic evidence was submitted to Othram’s laboratory in The Woodlands, Texas where DNA was extracted and used to build a comprehensive DNA profile using Forensic Grade Genome Sequencing®. Othram genealogists used the profile in a forensic genetic genealogy search to provide new leads to law enforcement.
These new leads fueled a follow-up investigation, leading Michigan State Police investigators to potential relatives of the man. The DNA profile of a potential relative was compared to the John Doe's profile using KinSNP® rapid relationship testing, allowing investigators to eventually confirm that Van Buren John Doe was, in fact, Robert L McDaniel, who was born in 1930 in Trenton, New Jersey.
Robert L McDaniel's identification represents the 9th case in the State of Michigan where law enforcement has publicly identified an individual using technology developed by Othram. To read about other cases in Michigan, visit DNASolves.
Michael Vogen
Director of Case Management
Michael works with law enforcement agencies throughout the United States and Canada on “unsolvable“ cases that can benefit from advanced DNA testing methods. He helps these agencies use cutting edge DNA sequencing and new forensic techniques to develop investigative leads for their cases.