La Vergne John Doe
Real Name: La Vergne John Doe
Case: Unidentified Remains
Date: August 1, 1978
Location: La Vergne, Tennessee
Case[]
Details: On August 1, 1978, a partially burned body with a gunshot wound was found at the Poole Knob Campground near La Vergne, Tennessee. An autopsy report on the remains described the unidentified man as being in his Late thirties and 5'10" tall. He had long, brown hair with a receding hairline and a reddish brown and gray beard. He also had scars on his stomach, possibly from a surgery on his aorta using a Dacron graft, a material to replace or repair his blood vessels. He had no natural teeth and instead had upper dentures about five to ten years old. The dentures were believed to be “bootlegged” with “Solila-Vac” teeth. He also had a quarter-sized mole two inches near his waistline.
The investigation began after a campground custodian found the burned body and notified the Sheriff's Office in the morning of August 1, 1978. The Tennessee Bureau of Investigation agent had a sketch made of the unidentified man, but no one has come forward in the forty years since he was found to identify him.. It is believed the man was killed somewhere else, and his body taken to the site where he was burned.
Through the years, detectives have tried to identify the man through contact nationwide with other law enforcement agencies, using his fingerprints with FBI and DNA from families who believed he could be a missing relative. Those tests thus far have been negative.
In 2014, Detective Dan Goodwin and former Detective Steve Kohler took over the investigation and talked to possible witnesses along with the original TBI agents who worked the case. They a TBI agent to do a sketch on the missing man. The sketch was released during media interviews in 2014 as well as a skull reconstruction by Dr. Lee Meadows Jantz from the State Forensic Anthropology Center. The man's DNA has since been submitted to the FBI's Combined DNA Index System to search for a match. No results have been found.
The profile of the unidentified man has since been added to the National Missing and Unidentified Persons System.
Extra Notes: This case has yet to be featured on Unsolved Mysteries.
Results: Unsolved - A 2020 update to the case has revealed that DNA from the remains will be sent to the genealogical DNA database to identify the remains through any possible surviving relatives.
Links:
- Who is the 1978 John Doe
- Tips Sought in 1978 Death
- County Officials Working To Identify Man
- Cold Case: Man Found Shot
- Rutherford County Cold Case
- Sheriff's Office Looks for Tips in 1978 Murder