AZ AZ - Ralph William Wesselman Jr., 21, Yuma, September 24, 1975

[victoriarobinson642]

NAMUS:

The National Missing and Unidentified Persons System (NamUs)

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www.namus.gov

--
Missing Age - 21 Years
Current Age - 69 Years
First Name - Ralph
Middle Name - William
Last Name - Wesselman Jr.
Nickname/Alias - “Butch”
Sex - Male
Height - 5' 8" - 6' 1" (68 - 73 Inches)
Weight - 150 - 185 lbs
Hair Color - Brown
Head Hair Description - Long brown, has been described as light brown and/or also dark brown
Eye Color - Blue
Scar/mark - Three scars, two in the shape of V's and one shaped like a Z, on his forehead

Race / Ethnicity - White / Caucasian
Date of Last Contact - September 24, 1975
Location - Yuma, Arizona
Circumstances of Disappearance - Ralph last spoke to family on 9/24/1975 via phone. He was last known to be in Yuma County, AZ, and has not been seen or heard from since.
Clothing
(Pants) LSW-Levi Jeans/described by one witness as "Grubby blue jeans", (Shirt)- Brown tank-top type of shirt, (Shoes) Yellow flip-flop and/or Tennis shoes: No color noted, (Briefs) White briefs and/or undershorts, (Eyeglasses) with gold wire around the frames of the lenses
Eyewear
(Eyeglasses) with gold wire around the frames of the lenses
--

 

[victoriarobinson642]

The National Missing and Unidentified Persons System (NamUs)

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

www.namus.gov

The timeline is a bit tight but I wonder if he could be this doe found in Yuma County two months later

 

[summergirl1]

It sounds like that John Doe had been at the desert wash much longer than two months..

 

[victoriarobinson642]

It sounds like that John Doe had been at the desert wash much longer than two months..

Given that it was in Arizona, I don't know how accurate they were.

 

[Skwesselman]

NAMUS:

The National Missing and Unidentified Persons System (NamUs)

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

www.namus.gov

--
Missing Age - 21 Years
Current Age - 69 Years
First Name - Ralph
Middle Name - William
Last Name - Wesselman Jr.
Nickname/Alias - “Butch”
Sex - Male
Height - 5' 8" - 6' 1" (68 - 73 Inches)
Weight - 150 - 185 lbs
Hair Color - Brown
Head Hair Description - Long brown, has been described as light brown and/or also dark brown
Eye Color - Blue
Scar/mark - Three scars, two in the shape of V's and one shaped like a Z, on his forehead

Race / Ethnicity - White / Caucasian
Date of Last Contact - September 24, 1975
Location - Yuma, Arizona
Circumstances of Disappearance - Ralph last spoke to family on 9/24/1975 via phone. He was last known to be in Yuma County, AZ, and has not been seen or heard from since.
Clothing
(Pants) LSW-Levi Jeans/described by one witness as "Grubby blue jeans", (Shirt)- Brown tank-top type of shirt, (Shoes) Yellow flip-flop and/or Tennis shoes: No color noted, (Briefs) White briefs and/or undershorts, (Eyeglasses) with gold wire around the frames of the lenses
Eyewear
(Eyeglasses) with gold wire around the frames of the lenses
--
View attachment 410690

This is my brother has anything been found? One correction (though minor) is that he would be 68 now as I am his older sister and currently 69. I have tears in my eyes seeing this again. If there is anything I can do to assist please let me know

 

[SimsGuy67]

This is my brother has anything been found? One correction (though minor) is that he would be 68 now as I am his older sister and currently 69. I have tears in my eyes seeing this again. If there is anything I can do to assist please let me know

Was he an Arizona native or did he have ties to any other locations? If he is a John Doe out there, it may help of narrow down where he could have been going. I hope he is found soon.

 

[SimsGuy67]

This one is interesting. A John Doe was found in Mecca, California on October 4, 1975. He was believed to have died around October 1. Ralph had some scars but the body was decomposed, so it's possible they may have already gone. Distance is about 2 hours. Not sure if the multiple races here says White and Hispanic or White or Hispanic. I'm gonna use the table I normally use to establish to possibility.

	Ralph Wesselman Jr. MP101250	Mecca John Doe (1975) UP7204
Sex	Male	Male
Race	White	White/Hispanic
Age	21	18 - 25
DLC/DOD	September 24, 1975	October 1, 1975 (3 days prior)
Height	5'8 - 6'1	6'
Weight	150 - 185 pounds	185 pounds
Hair Color	Brown	Brown
Eye Color	Blue	Unknown
Distinctive Features	Three scars.	Unknown/None
Distance	Yuma - Mecca	135 miles

I would like to mention both men were wearing blue Levi's, but they are common and John Doe was wearing a white T-shirt while Ralph was wearing a brown tank top of sorts.

 

[alb1on]

Was he an Arizona native or did he have ties to any other locations? If he is a John Doe out there, it may help of narrow down where he could have been going. I hope he is found soon.

His father and family came from Minnesota and I think he was probably born there, although since his brother was born in Washington DC 3 years later he may have been born there. Family remained there at the time he went missing. His father died in Florida, but I do not know when he moved there. His father seems to have moved around (as his second marriage was in Arlington, Virginia and the brother was born and lived in Washington)) but I suspect the Minnesota connection is the strongest followed by Washington.

 

[SimsGuy67]

His father and family came from Minnesota and I think he was probably born there. Family remained there at the time he went missing. His father died in Florida, but I do not know when he moved there. His father seems to have moved around (as his second marriage was in Arlington, Virginia) but I suspect the Minnesota connection is much the strongest.

I guess this means the most likely places Ralph could be found is either in Arizona or the surrounding area and any of the states that are on the way to Minnesota. Now, if he did go to Minnesota then how would he get there. Was he a known hitchhiker or would he have taken a bus? Sorry if you don't know this one as it's much more personality based but if you do, the info could help.

 

[alb1on]

I guess this means the most likely places Ralph could be found is either in Arizona or the surrounding area and any of the states that are on the way to Minnesota. Now, if he did go to Minnesota then how would he get there. Was he a known hitchhiker or would he have taken a bus? Sorry if you don't know this one as it's much more personality based but if you do, the info could help.

Sorry. The information came from Ancestry records and trees but says nothing about his habits.

 

[summergirl1]

Does he have family DNA on file? Or dental records on file? Those two things may help identify him if he's a John Doe out there somewhere whose body has been found and who has dentals or usable DNA (so far). NamUs doesn't say and he's not listed in the Doe Network.

 

[Skwesselman]

There is now DNA on file as they came and got mine last year. I am his older sister. He was living in Florida however had called our mom in Virginia and was going to be heading there.

 

[SimsGuy67]

If he was in fact headed to Virginia, this Doe found in Charles City could match. He may have been there since 1977, but PMI has been further off in other cases.

The National Missing and Unidentified Persons System (NamUs)

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

www.namus.gov