John Paul "Ike" Devaughn was a man whose body was discovered inside an abandoned van at an impound lot in Mogadore, Ohio, in 1988.
He was identified in November 2020 through a DNA match made using CODIS.
Case[]
Background[]
In November 1982, Devaughn shot and killed his brother-in-law during an argument in Ritchie County, West Virginia. He was arrested on November 19, 1982, and was convicted of second-degree murder in May 1983 with a sentence of 5-18 years in prison. He was paroled on October 2, 1987, after serving the minimum time for his conviction. After not making contact with his parole officer for some time, Devaughn was officially listed as a missing person on September 30, 1988, and became a wanted fugitive for parole violation in October 1989. However, by then, he was already dead.
Discovery[]
Devaughn was found inside an engineless van that had been towed at the local police department's orders to Adorni's Service Center. It was observed that he was present when the impound lot's owner allowed his friend to search for spare parts among the broken-down vehicles, and the friend began to notice a foul odor. The body was in an advanced state of decomposition, had several large blue patches on its skin, was wrapped in several blankets, and was surrounded by used cans of Sterno brand methanol gel. It was determined that the man had entered the abandoned van in an attempt to stay warm during the winter cold and accidentally died of carbon monoxide poisoning after burning the Sterno cans in the enclosed space of the van. The man was buried at Greenwood Cemetery in Mogadore, Ohio, on April 29, 1988.
Identification[]
The US Marshall Service became involved in Devaughn's case in January 2011 and was able to obtain a voluntary DNA sample from one of his family members in 2015. In 2019, a hair sample taken from the unidentified body was rediscovered in storage at the Portage County Coroner's office and sent off for DNA extraction and analysis. The DNA taken from the hair sample and the DNA from Devaughn's relative were matched through CODIS on November 13, 2020, and his body was able to be positively identified. The circumstances under which Devaughn ended up in Ohio from West Virginia are unknown.
Clothing and accessories[]
- Leather bracelet with the name "John" printed on it.
Gallery[]
Sources[]
- Ike Devaughn at Find a Grave
- Record-Courier
- WV News
- WBoy