CANADA George Norman Heys, 22,Toronto, 28 November 1978 *fresh initiative*

[dotr]

Toronto Police Service :: News Release #43247
Case #: 1978-12205
The Toronto Police Service's Missing Person Unit would like to make a public appeal for information in the case of a missing man.

George Norman Heys, was 22-years-old when he was last seen leaving his residence for a medical appointment on Tuesday, November 28, 1978. He never arrived at his appointment and was never seen again.

At the time he went missing, he was described as 5'10", 160 lbs., with hazel eyes, brown hair and having a small tattoo of a devil on his right upper arm.

He was a student at George Brown College and various people reported seeing George, at the time, in and around the downtown core but he was never located.

He was reported missing by his parents on Friday, December 1, 1978. They have since passed away but his siblings continue to seek answers to his disappearance.

His photo from 1978 has been re-released as well as an artist rendering of his age progression.

For more information on this investigation and other similar cases, please visit the National Missing Person website.

The Toronto Police Service Missing Person Unit (MPU) became operational on July 1, 2018. The MPU is a subsection of Homicide and will ensure a consistent process and investigative response for all occurrences of persons missing in the city of Toronto, or on the way to/from the city of Toronto. This includes both newly reported and historic cases of missing persons and unidentified human remains. For more information about the Missing Person Unit, click here.

 

[dotr]

Toronto's missing person unit dusts off decades-old cold cases | CBC News
March 11 2019
The unit was created in the wake of the Bruce McArthur investigation

Though his parents have since passed away, Heys' siblings continue to wonder what happened to their brother more than four decades ago.

Heys is just the latest cold case being re-surfaced by the Toronto Police Service's nine-month-old missing person unit in hopes that someone might know something.

In recent weeks, they've been reaching back into time, putting out calls for information on missing people from the 70s, 80s and 90s.

Det. Mary Vruna of the missing person unit told CBC in an email that the goal is to publish one every week "for as long as necessary."

"In an interview with CBC in October, Staff Supt. Myron Demkiw said that creating a unit had been discussed internally for "many, many years," but admitted that the Project Prism and Houston investigations, both of which looked at cases ultimately connected to Bruce McArthur, added urgency. "

 

[Nate_Bro]

Bump for George

 

[Nate_Bro]

I fear I may have some bitter sweet news for Georges family. If he was last seen in Toronto central, it seems plausible to me that he entered the Lake... I'm not familiar with the North American seasons but by the sounds of it it was winter, so it would have been freezing cold.
If that is the case, there is a John Doe that was found on the American side of the lake a few months later, same descriptors, dressed for winter, and also sporting a 'Devil' tattoo on the upper right arm.

It's been 40+ years, I hope this is the break they are looking for.

The National Missing and Unidentified Persons System (NamUs)

 

[dotr]

I fear I may have some bitter sweet news for Georges family. If he was last seen in Toronto central, it seems plausible to me that he entered the Lake... I'm not familiar with the North American seasons but by the sounds of it it was winter, so it would have been freezing cold.
If that is the case, there is a John Doe that was found on the American side of the lake a few months later, same descriptors, dressed for winter, and also sporting a 'Devil' tattoo on the upper right arm.

It's been 40+ years, I hope this is the break they are looking for.

The National Missing and Unidentified Persons System (NamUs)

Very good find!!
The National Missing and Unidentified Persons System (NamUs)

"5' 9"(69 inches) , Measured
Weight155 lbs, Measured
Date Body FoundMarch 24, 1979
Location Found Map
Location Oswego, New York
CountyOswego County

Circumstances of Recovery The decedent was found on March 23, 1979 in Lake Ontario near the mouth of the Oswego River.
Hair Color Brown
Blue jacket with a wool like inner lining. Gray long sleeved sweatshirt with thename Wolsey on the neck band. Under this was a button up long sleeved shirt that was dark blue with a pattern of red, yellow, and blue lines. The shirt label read Mr. B with t
Black loafer style shoes.
Timex water resistent wrist watch with black cloth strap."

 

[cobalt sky]

Amazing find @Nate_Bro ! Hopefully this is indeed him and his family can finally have some closure.

 

[RobinCAL]

I hope their questions are answered soon!!

 

[cobalt sky]

Now I'm sitting here thinking about this case! A few thoughts: he went missing from Toronto 11/28/78, the unidentified body was found almost 5 months later on 3/23/79. When the body was found, there was decomposition but they were able to make out the devil tattoo so it couldn't have been too advanced. Which makes me wonder, had he been alive all those months and died shortly before the body was found? Or...did he die shortly after he went missing in November, and the cold lake, which likely froze over at some point, preserved his body until March when the lake started to thaw? Also, the body was found all the way across on the other side of Lake Ontario at the mouth of the Oswego River, that is quite a far distance for a corpse to float! Did he come to the US willingly and just didn't want to be found, then was victim of foul play? So many questions that will likely never be answered.

 

[Nate_Bro]

My 'theory' is that he entered the water at some point not long after he went missing, as he was spotted a few times in Toronto and I cant imagine him being able to hide out for too long from searchers and Police. It was either intentional, or if there was ice he may have been walking on it and fallen through. The sub zero temperatures would have preserved the body for some time, and looking at water maps for the lake, the currents can behave erratically and could possibly hold a body under water for some time while carrying it a large distance. The distance is 200+kms east, and overall the current flows that way and heads towards the east coast ocean. Possibly the body could have been deeply submerged for some time, where the oxygen is lower and decomposition happens slower.

This is all speculation however... if this is him, we may never know what really happened.

 

[dotr]

Now I'm sitting here thinking about this case! A few thoughts: he went missing from Toronto 11/28/78, the unidentified body was found almost 5 months later on 3/23/79. When the body was found, there was decomposition but they were able to make out the devil tattoo so it couldn't have been too advanced. Which makes me wonder, had he been alive all those months and died shortly before the body was found? Or...did he die shortly after he went missing in November, and the cold lake, which likely froze over at some point, preserved his body until March when the lake started to thaw? Also, the body was found all the way across on the other side of Lake Ontario at the mouth of the Oswego River, that is quite a far distance for a corpse to float! Did he come to the US willingly and just didn't want to be found, then was victim of foul play? So many questions that will likely never be answered.

John Donovan: Buried Twice in a Month - The New York History Blog
Judging by this account, it seems possible a body could float that distance, imo, speculation.
"On Monday, word arrived of a body found floating off the shores of Stony Point on Henderson Bay. Could it be that of John Donovan? It hardly seemed likely, requiring a journey of a mile downstream to the mouth of the Oswego River and then 25 miles north across the waters of Lake Ontario. But a strong wind had been blowing across the open lake for several days, so Mrs. Donovan, supported by her father, drove to Belleville to look at the remains."

 

[Nate_Bro]

Here are some news stories from this year about his case with some more information:

Toronto police asking for help on missing person cold case | The Star

George Brown student, 22, vanished into thin air in 1978

https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/toronto/missing-persons-unit-1.5051057

 

[dotr]

George Brown student, 22, vanished into thin air in 1978
Brad Hunter

What happened to George Norman Heys? He disappeared from downtown Toronto in 1978 and has not been heard from since. TORONTO POLICE SERVICE
"The weather was turning cold that November day in 1978.

The mercury would eventually drop to -5C and winter was, indeed, coming.

John Sewell had just won the mayoralty race, bathhouse raids were still in full force and Queen was slated to play Maple Leaf Gardens on Dec. 4.

And on Nov. 28, 1978, George Norman Heys vanished into thin air, never to be seen again.
Except to his family and friends, Heys’ mysterious disappearance has never made a dent with online mavens of unsolved mysteries.

It is as if he never existed."

 

[cobalt sky]

My 'theory' is that he entered the water at some point not long after he went missing, as he was spotted a few times in Toronto and I cant imagine him being able to hide out for too long from searchers and Police. It was either intentional, or if there was ice he may have been walking on it and fallen through. The sub zero temperatures would have preserved the body for some time, and looking at water maps for the lake, the currents can behave erratically and could possibly hold a body under water for some time while carrying it a large distance. The distance is 200+kms east, and overall the current flows that way and heads towards the east coast ocean. Possibly the body could have been deeply submerged for some time, where the oxygen is lower and decomposition happens slower.

This is all speculation however... if this is him, we may never know what really happened.

I agree that it could definitely be possible for him to have entered the lake shortly after he went missing and was preserved in the cold water through the winter months. And the currents could have slowly moved him across the lake during those months under the surface of the ice. That is probably what happened. I'm heartbroken that his parents aren't still alive to have answers as to their son's fate. I wonder how he died? Again, we will likely never know. If murdered, his killer might not even still be alive today. What an interesting case!

 

[LadyL]

does the clothing match?

 

[dotr]

does the clothing match?

Unless i missed it, there does not seem to be a clothing description for the missing man.

 

[dotr]

This could be big news! rbbm.
Ws thread for UID male..
NY - NY - Oswego, WhtMale, UP935, 20-40, Devil tattoo, Mar’79

HUNTER: Has Toronto Sun solved missing-persons case from 1978?
June 29 2020

What happened to George Norman Heys? He disappeared from downtown Toronto in 1978 and has not been heard from since. TORONTO POLICE SERVICE
They found the body floating in the icy waters of Lake Ontario near the mouth of the Oswego River on the New York side.

''It was March 23, 1979.

In the parlance of unidentified bodies, the man —who carried no identification —was dubbed John Doe. In the ensuing decades, John Doe he has stayed.

For 42 years, John Heys and his siblings wondered what happened to their brother George on that chilly November day in 1978''.

''On Monday, the family confirmed that the Toronto Sun had matched identifiers from the floating man to George Norman Heys who disappeared on Nov. 28, 1978, never to be seen again.

Tuesday is John Heys’ birthday.

“The Toronto Police advised my dad that there could be a match to the Oswego John Doe. The weight and height matched and the man had a tattoo,” his niece, Kimberley Heys, told the Sun, adding that American cops had lost a photo of the tattoo taken at the time.''

''On the doenetwork.org website, the Sun found what appears to be the correct Joe Doe under the New York state unidentified bodies section.

The tattoo on the dead man’s upper right arm told the tale: a fire-breathing devil holding a pitchfork in his right hand; Japanese or Chinese characters beneath the image completed the skin illustration''.

 

[dotr]

July 3 2022 rbbm.

THE MISSING: Detectives won't rest 'until there is closure'

At least half-a-dozen times a day, Toronto cops put out a missing person notice.

canoe.com

''GEORGE HEYS
WHEN: Nov. 28, 1978
411: Heys, 22, was slated for a medical appointment on the day he disappeared from the city’s downtown core. In June 2020, the Toronto Sun linked Heys’ disappearance to the body of a John Doe found floating in Lake Ontario near Syracuse, NY. Both men had the exact same tattoo. The family and cops are still waiting for confirmation.''

 

[dotr]

Aug 4 2022

HUNTER: Bureaucratic brick wall in identifying missing man

George Heys vanished into the ether on a cold November day in 1978.

torontosun.com

''In about five minutes, I discovered that a floater had been found in Lake Ontario on the American side on March 23, 1979, near the mouth of the Oswego River.

The Oswego John Doe’s tattoo was an exact match for the one George Heys was so proud of. John Doe had a devil holding a pitchfork on his arm, breathing fire with some sort of Asian writing underneath it. So did Heys.

This was a tattoo Heys’ sister, Dolores Jones, remembered. Mission accomplished.

That should have been the end of it. But two years later, the missing Toronto man’s family is still waiting for answers.

His niece told The Sun that Toronto Police detectives have been “invested” and “helpful.” The difficulty appears to be on the American side of the lake.''

Ws thread for referenced UID male..

NY - NY - Oswego, Lake Ontario, WhtMale 20-40, UP935, fire breathing devil tattoo, clothes, Mar’79

The National Missing and Unidentified Persons System (NamUs) 1974UMNY Date of Discovery: March 23, 1979 Location of Discovery: Oswego, Oswego County, New York Estimated Date of Death: Months prior State of Remains: Not recognizable - Decomposing/putrefaction Cause of Death: Unknown Physical...

www.websleuths.com

 

[Nate_Bro]

This could be big news! rbbm.
Ws thread for UID male..
NY - NY - Oswego, WhtMale, UP935, 20-40, Devil tattoo, Mar’79

HUNTER: Has Toronto Sun solved missing-persons case from 1978?
June 29 2020

What happened to George Norman Heys? He disappeared from downtown Toronto in 1978 and has not been heard from since. TORONTO POLICE SERVICE
They found the body floating in the icy waters of Lake Ontario near the mouth of the Oswego River on the New York side.

''It was March 23, 1979.

In the parlance of unidentified bodies, the man —who carried no identification —was dubbed John Doe. In the ensuing decades, John Doe he has stayed.

For 42 years, John Heys and his siblings wondered what happened to their brother George on that chilly November day in 1978''.

''On Monday, the family confirmed that the Toronto Sun had matched identifiers from the floating man to George Norman Heys who disappeared on Nov. 28, 1978, never to be seen again.

Tuesday is John Heys’ birthday.

“The Toronto Police advised my dad that there could be a match to the Oswego John Doe. The weight and height matched and the man had a tattoo,” his niece, Kimberley Heys, told the Sun, adding that American cops had lost a photo of the tattoo taken at the time.''

''On the doenetwork.org website, the Sun found what appears to be the correct Joe Doe under the New York state unidentified bodies section.

The tattoo on the dead man’s upper right arm told the tale: a fire-breathing devil holding a pitchfork in his right hand; Japanese or Chinese characters beneath the image completed the skin illustration''.

Interesting title from Brad Hunter at the Toronto Sun. The article is dated June 2020, but even a quick Google search would have shown that this lead was being researched in 2019 by myself, and discussed here on Websleuths as early as December 2019. Cheeky.

 

[dotr]

2022 rbbm

HUNTER: Bureaucratic brick wall in identifying missing man

George Heys vanished into the ether on a cold November day in 1978.

torontosun.com

''Heys was a loner, who didn’t have a girlfriend, maybe there was a drug problem. He did a 90-day stint in rehab at the Clarke Institute of Psychiatry, the predecessor to CAMH. The Queen St. W. institution would be one of the last places George Heys would be seen.

“He was playing volleyball at the institute and one of the nurses came in and said ‘George, you can’t be in here. You’re not a patient anymore,” Jones told the News Now. “And then Nov. 28, gone, just gone.”

“My grandparents died without knowing what happened,” Kimberly Heys said in 2020.

As to what happened that November day, no one is really sure about that either. Maybe it was suicide. Maybe it was murder.

“Maybe he was murdered because he owed someone money. My dad didn’t know. Was he gay?” Heys said. “We did not know any of that.”

On Tuesday, an exhausted Kimberly Heys once more emailed the Oswego DA Oakes.

“To this date, my Aunt Dolores (Jones) [and other family members] and I continue to wait day-to-day, week-to-week, month-to-month, YEAR-TO-YEAR without answers,” Heys wrote.

“Yet we all believe that the remains of the person who washed up on the Syracuse side of Lake Ontario four months after ‘Georgie’s’ disappearance are, in fact, that of my Uncle. Here we are approaching 2023 …”

She added: “When people watch TV/movies they are/we are led to believe that it is important to law enforcement and others in the mix to solve missing persons cases. We are certainly not seeing ANY amount of urgency being given to this situation, Sir.”