IN IN - Richmond, WhtMale UP12980, 25-30, obese, in motel room, May'79

[CarlK90245]

Here's a John Doe case just recently added to NamUs that I've never heard about before.

NamUs UP 12980 The National Missing and Unidentified Persons System (NamUs)

No Image Available

Unidentified White Male

The victim was discovered on May 19, 1979 at the Town and Country Motel, 3643 East Main St., Richmond (Wayne County), Indiana

Body Condition: Recognizable face​

Vital Statistics

Estimated age: 25-30 years​

Approximate Height: 5'9" (69 inches).​

Approximate Weight: 290 pounds.​

Hair: Dark and wavy​

Body Hair: Dark Brown​

Facial Hair: Dark Brown​

Eye Color: Brown​

Other Distinctive Characteristics: Obese​

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Clothing & Accessories

Clothing: One change of clothing and toiletries in a small vinyl suitcase were found in the room. All tags had been removed.​

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Footwear: not known by investigator​

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Other Items: 3 recent magazines, all with address labels removed.​

Identifiers

Fingerprints: Fingerprint information is available elsewhere​

Dentals: Dental information / charting is currently not available​

DNA: Sample submitted - Tests complete​

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Circumstances

Cut his right wrist and sat watching television until death. Name and address in motel registry proven falsified by police locally. Clothing tags had all been removed as well as addresses on magazines found in the room.​

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<MOD NOTE: Several original links throughout the thread were broken and have been edited to include the current link (when available) and images as of July 27, 2023>

 

[CarlK90245]

Except for age being slightly below range, Nicholas Peter Zizzamia fits the description of this John Doe to a tee.

The National Missing and Unidentified Persons System (NamUs)

By bringing people, information, forensic science and technology together, NamUs helps resolve cases.

www.namus.gov

Nicholas Peter Zizzamia – The Charley Project

Circumstances:​	Possibly Suicidal	Suicide	Match
Loc LKA/Discovery Loc:​	Cherry Hill New Jersey	Richmond Indiana	580 Miles
Date LKA/Discovery Date:​	12-May-1979	19-May-1979	7 Days
Eyes:​	Brown	Brown	Match
Hair:​	Brown and Wavy	Brown and Wavy	Match
Weight:​	290 lbs	290 lbs	Match
Height:​	5 Feet 9 to 5 Feet 11 inches	5 Feet 9 inches	Within Range
Age:​	22	25-30	Slightly below Range
*****	Nicholas Zizzamia	John Doe UP12980	Comparison

 

[shutterbug22]

They've been discussing this possible match on Nicholas thread and looks like investigators are checking it out: http://www.websleuths.com/forums/sh...-Nicholas-Zizzamia-22-Cherry-Hill-12-May-1979

 

[Migmuu]

Sure sounds like him. The eye color (brown) matches too.

The 580-mile distance could be a problem, though. I'm assuming Zizzamia didn't have a car at the time since he was driving his dad's, and that one was found at a barbershop three days after he vanished. He could have used public transit or even hitchhiked to Idaho, though.

 

[CarlK90245]

Thanks for the heads up shutterbug. I was typing up an email, but I now see that I don't need to.

 

[bflocket]

I remember a thread for this UID that I saw not too long ago, but I can't find it when searching.

 

[annemc2]

I thought so too, bflocket. It was like deja vu all over again!

 

[bflocket]

I remember because I looked for something on a map and the guy died the day before I was born....

 

[annemc2]

Re-read the Nicholas Zizzamia thread - that's where I had seen this information/connection before! So I'm not crazy after all (or at least not in this instance)!

 

[alllads]

That definitely seems like a plausible match. Another point towards it maybe - in my opinion the UID was NOT transient or living alone before coming to the hotel. They must have been living at home or somewhere they could be tracked from - or else why the magazines with addresses? Also must have lived a quite settled life before disappearing, since you're unlikely to have 3 separate magazine subscriptions for a place you stay only 1 month or something.

Here's a bit more info on Doenetwork, with some more details:
http://www.doenetwork.org/cases/2388umin.html
According to this, the UID first arrived in Richmond on the 15th of May (possibly).

Here's some more details with an article about his burial: http://www.findagrave.com/cgi-bin/f...GSfn=John&GSiman=1&GScid=85608&GRid=92287024&

Apparently, he was in a condition to be identified, and there were photos of him...

 

[deca]

That definitely seems like a plausible match. Another point towards it maybe - in my opinion the UID was NOT transient or living alone before coming to the hotel. They must have been living at home or somewhere they could be tracked from - or else why the magazines with addresses? Also must have lived a quite settled life before disappearing, since you're unlikely to have 3 separate magazine subscriptions for a place you stay only 1 month or something.

Here's a bit more info on Doenetwork, with some more details:
http://www.doenetwork.org/cases/2388umin.html
According to this, the UID first arrived in Richmond on the 15th of May (possibly).

Here's some more details with an article about his burial: http://www.findagrave.com/cgi-bin/f...GSfn=John&GSiman=1&GScid=85608&GRid=92287024&

Apparently, he was in a condition to be identified, and there were photos of him...

I wouldn't spend too much time on the magazines. Many doc offices/public buildings/donation centers have magazines that have been left there. The donater cuts out their address for privacy. So it could be that he just picked them up from somewhere.

 

[FL Wannabe]

You know, deca, I would like to respectfully disagree with you on the magazines. First of all, it was 1979. I don't think identity theft was of primary concern in those days. Secondly, the description states that tags were removed from clothing. He gave false info at check-in. One can also surmise that there was no id on the body or in a wallet, or if there were id it was fake too. To me, all those things together indicate the decedent was aware he would be committing suicide and took the extra steps to delay his being identified.

 

[azure]

Sure sounds like him. The eye color (brown) matches too.

The 580-mile distance could be a problem, though. I'm assuming Zizzamia didn't have a car at the time since he was driving his dad's, and that one was found at a barbershop three days after he vanished. He could have used public transit or even hitchhiked to Idaho, though.

You're right about 580 miles, but this UID was found in Indiana, not Idaho.

 

[skydelta3574]

Sure sounds like him. The eye color (brown) matches too.

The 580-mile distance could be a problem, though. I'm assuming Zizzamia didn't have a car at the time since he was driving his dad's, and that one was found at a barbershop three days after he vanished. He could have used public transit or even hitchhiked to Idaho, though.

Indiana [emoji4]

 

[Migmuu]

Whoops, didn't even notice that. Oh well, can't edit it now lol

 

[tgnicholas]

Paryers

 

[JayFletcher6493]

This poor guy my heart breaks for him

 

[DevoidOfRedemption]

I definitely think this is Nicholas Zizzamia. Everything synchs up, plus the missing clothing tags and subscription addresses point to someone who just wanted to "vanish", as Zizzamia's friends said he wished to do.

 

[Elizabella]

This is the first I've heard about either case. And I can't help but wonder...why would someone who intends to commit suicide want to keep their body unidentified? I was thinking about this, and the only things I can think of are....

1) insurance reasons (doesn't want spouse or whoever to be able to collect insurance payouts).
2) hates family and just wants to "disappear". But that strikes me as odd since, why would you care if they found you dead if you don't care about them?
3) wasn't really suicide (although in this instance it would be hard to fake, especially since he gave a fake name when he checked in)

Sorry, this part was just bugging me, since suicide victims typically WANT to be found, for one reason or another......

 

[Elizabella]

Here's another article about Zizzamia that goes into detail about his depression and his desire to just "disappear" and kill himself. So sad..... <modsnip: broken link>