San Diego John Doe (September 1981)

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San Diego John Doe
Discovered	September 28, 1981
Unidentified for	42 years
Sex	Male
Location	San Diego, California
Age	20 - 40
Race	Unknown (possibly Hispanic/Black/White)
Height	5'7" - 5'10"
Weight	106-135 pounds
Body condition	Burned
Postmortem interval	Recent
Cause of death	Homicide

San Diego John Doe was a male murder victim whose burned body was discovered in a dumpster in 1981. 

Case

At around 5 a.m. on September 28, 1981, police were called to the Big Bear Supermarket to investigate the source of smoke coming from behind the business. After the arrival of law enforcement and firefighters, it was discovered that a dumpster was on fire. Upon extinguishing the fire, the burned remains of a male were discovered. Authorities determined that the male's body had been placed in the trash receptacle and that the fire had been intentionally started with gasoline, most likely to destroy evidence. The victim's exact cause of death is either unknown or unreleased, but several sources confirm that the manner of death was homicide.

Law enforcement evidently spent several decades attempting (and failing) to identify the decedent. In 2020, local law enforcement worked with NCMEC to create likenesses of what the murder victim may have looked like while alive. The remains were stated to be burned beyond recognition, which could raise questions about the accuracy of the reconstructions.

Initially, it was believed that the victim was a teenager (between 15 and 20 years old) when he was killed, but in late 2020, re-examination of his dentals indicated that he was probably significantly older than that, perhaps as old as 40. One source gives a more specific estimate of "33 years old, give or take five years".

Profile

Characteristics

• Brown eyes.
• Curly, reddish-brown hair with blond ends.
• B-type blood.

Sources

• San Diego John Doe at NCMEC
• San Diego John Doe at NamUs
• NBC San Diego
• Village News