Identified! Oh - Eastlake, Whtmale 454umoh, 70, Alias 'jnchandler Iii', Jul'02 - Robert Ivan Nichols

[Gardener1850]

There is a reason he never contacted his family and this REMAINS a mystery. He left $82,000 in a bank account and did not leave it to his son. It appears he never wanted to be identified.

Calling his son to speak.

 

[Gardener1850]

His son is grateful the identification has been made and a family mystery has been solved. He knew it was his father as soon as he saw the photos. He said maybe there are half siblings out there he doesn't know about. He thanked all those involved in identifying his father.

 

[Triss]

Was he a criminal? I can't watch the stream because it gives me an "access denied" message, probably due to the fact that I'm in the EU and not in the US so if somebody could tell me that would be great.

 

[Gardener1850]

Margaret Press is recapping how they found him. Very interesting. Will have to watch again to quote her later.

(Sorry my replies here are lagging before posting due to WS site issues, agh! )

 

[Maia_1011]

Was he a criminal? I can't watch the stream because it gives me an "access denied" message, probably due to the fact that I'm in the EU and not in the US so if somebody could tell me that would be great.

I'm in the UK. This is the only live stream that will work:
U.S. Marshals release name of man who stole Joseph Newton Chandler's identity

 

[Gardener1850]

Was he a criminal? I can't watch the stream because it gives me an "access denied" message, probably due to the fact that I'm in the EU and not in the US so if somebody could tell me that would be great.

Not that they know of. They identified him but they still don't know why he chose to never contact family again after 1965. LE will continue to investigate why he took on the new identity.

 

[Betty P]

Was he a criminal? I can't watch the stream because it gives me an "access denied" message, probably due to the fact that I'm in the EU and not in the US so if somebody could tell me that would be great.

No, not from what they do know about him and his activities. Sounds like a guy who had some kind of psych break after being wounded/serving in the Navy. Came back and burned his uniform. Married and started a family, but obviously still had psych issues, so just walked away.

 

[Betty P]

Women Dr.s from IdentifyUS talking about how they used the DNA (ran 2 tests) and researched connections in online family tree database GED match. It helped when they ran another test on the remaining sample and combined the two DNA profiles.

 

[Triss]

I'm in the UK. This is the only live stream that will work:
U.S. Marshals release name of man who stole Joseph Newton Chandler's identity

It works, thank you!

 

[Gardener1850]

They did a second round of sequencing of the DNA to see if their were any new matches.
In March of 2018 they got a 3rd cousin.
Then they got another match that also went to the same tree.
They had had Robert's name in their tree since Dec with no death date, but these interlocking matches pointed to the tree.
There was an address attached to Robert's real name in that tree that belonged to his sister and Chandler had used that address for something (not sure if I'm explaining this correctly-- she spoke really fast).

 

[Betty P]

Reports show he went through Stroud, OK in 1965. Said he was going to San Francisco. Last letter he sent his son had 1 penny in it. Not sure what that meant. Also went to Texas.

SS and IRS said he worked under his real name until 1976, but records showing who he worked for are gone. Came to Cleveland area as Chandler in 1978.

 

[Gardener1850]

The police still want to know where he was from 1965-1978.

Postmarks on letters show he went through Stroud (sp?), Oklahoma.
Also postmarks from Richmond and from San Francisco.
However they do not know if he stayed in California.
He could have gone to Texas for all they know-- they just don't know where he was or what he was doing

Nichols worked under his real name until 1976 but they can't tell where.
He showed up in Ohio working under the name Chandler in 1978.

 

[Betty P]

They did a second round of sequencing of the DNA to see if their were any new matches.
In March of 2018 they got a 3rd cousin.
Then they got another match that also went to the same tree.
They had had Robert's name in their tree since Dec with no death date, but these interlocking matches pointed to the tree.
There was an address attached to Robert's real name in that tree that belonged to his sister and Chandler had used that address for something (not sure if I'm explaining this correctly-- she spoke really fast).

I think they said it was the address he used for his fake birth certificate application or DL, something similar. She was talking fast.

 

[Betty P]

Divorced his wife in 1964. Just came home one day and said he was leaving and they would some day figure out why. Went to Dearborn, MI, Stroud, OK , etc.

JMO, he was OCD already, maybe on the autism spectrum, etc. Sounds like he had a difficult time handling personal relationships. Service in WWII made things much worse, probably had PTSD. Just took off because he didn't want the burden of maintaining long term personal relationships.

 

[Gardener1850]

He divorced his wife in 1964. He came home and told his wife he was leaving her and their boys and that "In due time they would know why"... But that is all they know. Letters from Stroud, OK and Richmond are from 1965.

 

[MarziPanda]

Surprised to find that he was reported missing. With a case like this I didn't think that would be the case. I agree with Betty. It sounds like he had a really rough time in the war and had PTSD or other mental health issues.

 

[creepedout]

1823 Center St, Columbus, OH, was the fictitious address he put in the rental application for where his fake sister, Mary Wilson, lived.

 

[Any123]

Wow. If a hospital hadn’t saved a piece of tissue for 15 yrs it would’ve remained a mystery.

 

[dotr]

Who Was The Man Claiming To Be Joseph Newton Chandler III?
"There is a reason he went missing in 1965 and adopted the identity of a dead boy," U.S. Marshal Peter Elliott said at a news conference. That reason remains a mystery and the U.S. Marshals want the public's help piecing the puzzle together.

One of the popular theories is that Nichols may have been the infamous Zodiac killer. Elliott said California law enforcement agencies are working that angle.

Elliott said he cannot rule out the possibility that Nichols was the Zodiac killer, "I can't say that he is and I can't say that he isn't."

"Elliott said he would occasionally go missing for weeks at a time, telling the few people close to him that "they were getting close."
"Anyone with information on the case is asked to contact the U.S. Marshals Service at 216-522-4482."

 

[Gardener1850]

He was born in 1926.
11 year difference in the age he chose to claim as his fake ID.