Identified! IN - Brownsburg, Male Skeletal UP12734, 40-60, Inside Well Tank, Jul'13 - John Turner

[airportwoman]

That's a long time to be looking for somebody.

 

[bombardier]

i'm guessing the clothing of the UID were too degraded and that's why theyre not described?

Steven Doc Gabbard - dlc June 10, 2002. 39 y/o. Wears an upper denture plate, has a watch, no mention of a ring but wore a gold necklace. Last seen 2hr drive away, going on a trip on his motorcycle...

Eric Lee Franks - dlc March 21, 2011 (so maybe too late?). 38 y/o. Apparently wore upper + lower dentures so unless there was some ambiguity w/ the UID its likely not him. Might be easy to rule-out as he's missing part of a toe. Last seen 5 hr drive away.

Charles Lewis Randolph - dlc Oct 21, 2009. 55 y/o. Wore dentures but unsure if they upper and/or top. Last seen 4 hr drive away. Last seen getting into someone's car and family believes he met with foul play. I like Charles best as the identity of the UID as he matches the age and i feel like he would wear the Appalachian mechanic hat?? as he lived in the region and its sort of an older man's-style hat

 

[victoriarobinson642]

That hat is definitely a dad hat. I'd be shocked if this UID was younger than 45.

 

[bombardier]

bump
No new rule-outs since 2020.

 

[Caring1]

Assuming UID has some connection to Appalachian Mechanical, this would expand the areas to research for MP’s as there are a few different lines of businesses with the name titled Appalachian Mechanical.

Appalachian Mechanical
Property Preservation and Maintenance - Morganton, NC
Millwright Company - Ironton, OH
Contractors, LLC - Asheville and Spruce Pine, NC (liquidated 1991)
HVAC, Gas, Plumbing - Bristol, Kingsport and Kodak TN
Architectural and Mechanical Engineering - Tazewell, TN

Initial review of the area for the first business listed in NC, the following popped up. Missing since 2003, both wrists previously broken.

Jackie Edward Orders – The Charley Project

Also interesting is the second business listed, the Millwright company as they specialize in dismantling, reassembling, moving and repairing machinery. Could this include a well tank?

Was the address or detailed area where UID was found noted anywhere? A previous owner history (and/or neighbors) could be useful.

 

[imstilla.grandma]

INDIANAPOLIS — The mystery of human remains found inside a large metal tank on a rural Hendricks County property has been solved.

A property owner just outside Brownsburg was working to clear the property just across the Marion- Hendricks County line in July 2013 when a scrapper opened the metal container to dispose of it. When the scrapper cut a hole in the well pump tank to remove debris, he noticed bones and a sock.

A team of law enforcement officials responded to the scene to recover the remains. Along with the remains, officials found a pair of Reebok shoes and a distinctive hat with the logo “Appalachian Mechanical” on it.

Anthropologists at the University of Indianapolis analyzed the bones and determined them to belong to a Caucasian or Hispanic man who was 40-60 years old at the time of his death.

A bone from the remains was sent to a Texas Lab in 2018 in an attempt to extract DNA. The University of North Texas Center for Human Identification. The center performs forensic genetic and anthropological examinations for criminal casework and missing person identification.

On June 7, the Indianapolis Metropolitan Police Department learned DNA from the bones matched samples from one of their cases.

The case dates back to April 19, 1988, when Norma Turner went to the Indiana State Police because she had not seen or been in touch with her ex-husband, John E. Turner. He was last seen on April 11, 1988, a week after Easter Monday.

More than three decades later, a detective with the IMPD’s missing person’s division contacted John’s daughter and grandson to collect DNA samples. These samples were sent to the University of North Texas.

The University of North Texas was able to take the DNA and match it to DNA from the bone collected by the Hendricks County Sheriff’s Office in 2013. Dan Chubb, Chief Deputy for the Hendricks County Coroner’s Office, says this was a difficult case for the office.

Amanda Goings with the Hendricks County Sheriff’s Office said the evolution of DNA technology means they are always looking back at older cases to see if they can’t bring a resolution to them.

Remains identified, but questions remain​

While it was a tragic outcome for family members of John Turner, Goings said the identification brings some answers to the family.

“Ultimately, this is a very tragic event in their lives, and obviously with 30 some years of history behind them, they’ve been suffering with this for a long time, not knowing, and not having answers,” said Goings. “So to be able to give them at least a small piece of the information is quite rewarding.”

Remains discovered in rural Hendricks County property identified as Indianapolis man missing since 1988

The remains found inside a metal container on a Hendricks County property have been identified as an Indianapolis man missing since 1988.

fox59.com

 

[YaYa_521]

This is the only missing profile I could find for John Turner.

John E Turner - Indiana Missing Person Directory

It's shocking to me that John was reported missing in 1988 yet the tank didn't appear dumped on the property where it was located until 2013. I hope investigators will be able to determine whether a person or people connected to John moved and/or cleared their own property of debris (i.e., the water tank) around 2013. It'll be interesting to see how this case turns out.

From post # 7 above:
IBM
The tank itself also became a focal point for investigators. While the bones appeared to have been decaying for quite some time, Hendricks County Detective Terry Judy said the 120-gallon metal tank was dumped on the property sometime between May and July of this year (2013).

Rest in peace, John.

 

[Blurgle]

It's quite possible that whoever dumped the tank had no idea what it contained. It might not even have been dumped; we’ve all seen even heavy stuff go flying out of truck beds.

 

[airportwoman]

At least he has his identity back.

 

[carbuff]

Just for interest: Mr. Turner's obituary John Edward Turner Jr. Obituary 2013 - Legacy Cremation & Funeral Services