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Kožichovice John Doe

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Kožichovice John Doe was a man whose skeletal remains were discovered by hunters buried in Kožichovice, Czech Republic. The decedent had been shot three times.

The man was identified as a Slovakian national in February 2022. However, his name has been withheld. A specialized organized crime unit investigated his case before it was halted in October 2023.

Case[]

On 10 October 2008, a man in Kožichovice, Czech Republic, came across a group of wild boars while he was out to retrieve partially buried zinc rain gutters that he thought might be repurposed. The man's dogs had barked and stopped at this area before, but he mostly disregarded this at the time. When he moved closer, he noticed the boars were eating human remains clad in only a pair of underwear.

The police were quickly called, and the boars were dispersed. The hunter discovered the sight not long after the boars had dug up the remains and begun eating them, so most of the skeleton, save for its lingering bits of flesh, was intact.

South Moravian police opened an investigation and labelled the case as a homicide, since the decedent was buried in a shallow grave about half a meter deep and three bullets were found in it. Estimates claimed that the man had died between one and two years earlier. A coroner came to the same conclusion as the police, describing his death as violent.

No local missing persons matched his description, leading to police labelling the decedent as a foreigner. Earrings and two eaves were also found at the same time, with police sharing pictures of them with the public. The police believed the crime was premeditated. The area was a popular one that tourists, fishermen and hunters also walked through, so the decedent had likely been killed elsewhere and brought to the woods.

The time of death was estimated to have occurred between May 2007 and summer 2008, most likely approximately one year before he was discovered, so the police pulled all missing person records from that time. There were only two missing men in the district, both cases occurring in 1999 and 2002. Neither were in their mid to late 20s or their early 30s, so the police looked to international databases.

The Prague Forensic Institute created a facial reconstruction of the decedent and released it to the public.

Next, the police looked into the glove itself. It was a size 27, brand "Pyrotechnik," with mechanical circular damage approximately 1 mm in diameter in two places on its surface and bore machine-printed numbers "1168 2982 64 132 27 089" preceded by a hexagonal symbol. The glove was made of fine leather and used for handling work in dry environments such as warehouses or workshops. The police believed it was manufactured between 1991 and 2001. As it was likely the decedent's, he likely engaged in manual labor.

Based on this information, the police inquired with all businesses in the Kožichovice industrial zone on whether any employees quit or had their employment terminated during the estimated post-mortem interval.

They also interviewed the cottage owners in the Kožichovice cadastral area about any suspicious persons.

Lastly, they placed many flyers and notices across the area and had local television programs broadcast notices about the case, seeking information.

Identification[]

On 22 February 2022, Czech police announced that the man had been identified as a Slovakian national, although how they reached this conclusion hasn't been disclosed to the public. After his identification, the investigation was transferred to the National Centre Against Organized Crime (NCOZ). They investigated the case until 25 October 2023, when it was finally closed. They were unable to obtain enough evidence to name any suspects.

Characteristics[]

  • Straight brown hair.
  • Poor and unkempt teeth.
  • Missing his front teeth.

Clothing and accessories[]

  • Earrings.
  • Two eave pieces.
  • A pair of underwear.
  • A right-hand work glove.

Sources[]

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