Identified! KY - Lexington, Vehicle & Human Bones Found in Kentucky River, Oct'16 - Martha Helmick

[Cubby]

Bump.

 

[tatertot]

If this does not turn out to be John Keyton's car, Claude and Marie Shelton were driving a white '67 Ford Galaxie at the time of their disappearance. The '67 Fairlane and Galaxie models look very similar with stacked headlights, similar grilles, etc.

Claude Shelton – The Charley Project

 

[MadMcGoo]

Anything new on this case?

 

[carbuff]

The Namus case isn't visible to the public, though it's pretty clear from the various public statements that there is one.

Mr. Keyton's pages are all still available. His Namus entry lists several exclusions, all from Virginia.

Ruvil Hale and the Sheltons have exclusions but none from Kentucky.

 

[MadMcGoo]

By the sound of things, it seems like this is quite likely the missing trio...I think? Although I was getting a little confused with the exact # of vehicles/sets of remains found in this particular area. I’m still hunting for KY missing/UID newspaper articles so maybe I’ll come across some pertaining to this incident...

 

[carbuff]

By the sound of things, it seems like this is quite likely the missing trio...I think? Although I was getting a little confused with the exact # of vehicles/sets of remains found in this particular area. I’m still hunting for KY missing/UID newspaper articles so maybe I’ll come across some pertaining to this incident...

Quote from post #39, "...a private laboratory with advanced DNA techniques can go deep enough to match the specimens to the person’s distant relatives." Sounds like they're looking for a Parabon/DDP type of processing and identification. If that's the case we could be looking at another year or more by the time they choose the lab, go through the procedures to transfer the remains, and get the results.

 

[Tuck]

The National Missing and Unidentified Persons System (NamUs)

The case has now been made publicly available.

 

[carbuff]

The National Missing and Unidentified Persons System (NamUs)

The case has now been made publicly available.

One exclusion already:

MP24315 Katie Gray 11/29/2004 McCracken KY

 

[Owutatangledweb]

Another possibility.

Nellie Florence Cornman Flickinger – The Charley Project

 

[MadMcGoo]

Unidentified Person / NamUs #UP15958

Date Body Found: October 22, 2016
Location Found: Lexington, Fayette County, Kentucky
Inventory of Remains: Head not recovered, Torso not recovered, One or more limbs not recovered, One or both hands not recovered
Condition of Remains: Not recognizable - Partial skeletal parts only
Sex: Female
Race / Ethnicity: Uncertain
Estimated Age Group: Adult
Estimated Year of Death: 1967-1980
Height: Cannot Estimate
Weight: Cannot Estimate
Hair Color: Unknown
Eye Color: Unknown
Clothing: Nylon Stockings (On the Body)

Circumstances of Recovery: Partial skeletal remains recovered from Kentucky River.

 

[Sillybilly]

Results inconclusive but LE says 99.9% chance the remains are related to the case of missing persons Ed Keyton, Martha and Flora Helmick:

Cold Case Nearing End

Bridgewater Police Chief Joe Simmons said Thursday that results from DNA tests on remains found near Lexington, Ky., were inconclusive.

The tests compared DNA to a niece of Martha Helmick, who was last seen leaving town with her sister, Flora, and John Ed Keyton on Aug. 3, 1973. They were driving to a family reunion in Dabolt, Ky., but never arrived.

[...]

Simmons said there’s a “99.9 percent” chance that the vehicle belonged to Keyton.

VA - VA - Ed Keyton, 81, Martha, 54, & Flora Helmick, 52, Bridgewater, 3 Aug 1973

 

[MadMcGoo]

Results inconclusive but LE says 99.9% chance the remains are related to the case of missing persons Ed Keyton, Martha and Flora Helmick:

Cold Case Nearing End

Bridgewater Police Chief Joe Simmons said Thursday that results from DNA tests on remains found near Lexington, Ky., were inconclusive.

The tests compared DNA to a niece of Martha Helmick, who was last seen leaving town with her sister, Flora, and John Ed Keyton on Aug. 3, 1973. They were driving to a family reunion in Dabolt, Ky., but never arrived.

[...]

Simmons said there’s a “99.9 percent” chance that the vehicle belonged to Keyton.

VA - VA - Ed Keyton, 81, Martha, 54, & Flora Helmick, 52, Bridgewater, 3 Aug 1973

Thank you for the update!!

 

[MadMcGoo]

Refreshing the thread...

 

[carbuff]

The identification doesn't appear to have been finalized yet.

 

[HeatherC422]

Refreshing the thread...

Local news states an update on this case will be given Wednesday
Bones found in river five years ago apparently identified - ABC 36 News

 

[fred&edna]

Local news states an update on this case will be given Wednesday
Bones found in river five years ago apparently identified - ABC 36 News

Great news! 'Looking forward to the update.

 

[Oakie]

Via the Doe Network, only John Edwin Keyton, from Bridgewater, VA, is shown as missing on that date. Of course he's been speculated as being the unidentified Doe for a long time; I was among those who thought it was Keyton. His Doe Network entry is quite interesting.

Flora and Martha Helmick were reported missing with him.

 

[iulia]

Human remains found in Ky. River brings 48-year-old cold case to an end | FOX 56 News

On Wednesday, Dec. 22 the department was joined by the Fayette County Coroner to finally reveal the identity of human remains found in the Kentucky River 5 years ago.
[...]
Martha Helmick has been positively identified as one of the individuals found in the car.

It is confirmed that Martha was accompanied by Flora Helmick, and John Ed Keyton when she left Bridgewater, Va. in 1973 but their remains have not been recovered yet.

 

[Oakie]

https://www.kentucky.com/news/state/kentucky/article256767967.html#storylink=hpdigest_local

Another article on this find.

 

[branmuffin]

That vehicle looks like an old Ford Bronco not anything like a Ford Fairlane.