TX TX - Houston, *GRAPHIC*, suicide, Wht/Hsp Male, 13-19, UP87935, found dead in bus, Jan'22

[EmiliaRT007]

I am not sure whether this guy has been added before. I don’t think so. He is a little heavier and the ear profile is not quite right, but if you do it as a mirror image it may work and he could have lost weight. I think the location may also be off, but thought I would put him out there.
The National Missing and Unidentified Persons System (NamUs) and his name is Manuel.

I can see some similarities between him and the Doe. He’s just too tall and too heavy. The Doe was 5’1”, this guy is 5’2”-5’3”. Not terribly far off. Not the busboy I was talking about but I believe he’s close enough to be a potential match.

 

[ralyla]

I think he looks about 14-17 to me. He looks like he was in high school. His height may suggest he was younger too. I’m a bit taller than John Doe at 5’2” but I weigh the same as he does. I’m small for my age even as a female.

Surely someone knows him. This is someone’s son, brother, cousin, friend, grandson, nephew, maybe uncle? I would say we need to keep searching, as of Apr 2023 he remains unidentified.

I can maybe help a bit. He looks slightly familiar to me. I remember a few days before John Doe was found, I was eating at a restaurant near the location (I’m from Houston.) There was a distinct busboy working there.

He looked about 15-17. He was very short, Hispanic, and had this haircut. This exact haircut. And that day I saw it it looked very fresh. He had the same face shape as Doe, a similar nose, and he had very smooth skin. I don’t remember the guy’s name, it was either Manuel or Emmanuel. Never gave a last name (of course, we only talked for 5 minutes.) He was a really nice guy. I think this is him. He was never reported missing AFAIK. If it’s not him I wonder how the busboy is doing now.

This case is so sad.

Welcome to WebSleuths! Thank you for sharing - I'm glad you are reporting the young boy you saw. This case has stayed with me since day one, it is so sad. Please keep us updated if you hear back from the officers.

 

[hoodratholly]

I am not sure whether this guy has been added before. I don’t think so. He is a little heavier and the ear profile is not quite right, but if you do it as a mirror image it may work and he could have lost weight. I think the location may also be off, but thought I would put him out there.
The National Missing and Unidentified Persons System (NamUs) and his name is Manuel.

I’m thinking of submitting it to the police. Because Manuel/Emmanuel looked so strikingly similar. I think Doe was a bit taller though. Emmanuel looked about 4’9”-4’11” to me.

Edit: I will be sure to provide details of the busboy to the police, along with details of the UID. Hopefully the information I provided can maybe help give this Doe his name back. This case seems very solvable.

@EmiliaRT007, is that NAMUS the same Manuel/Emmanuel you remember?

 

[EmiliaRT007]

@EmiliaRT007, is that NAMUS the same Manuel/Emmanuel you remember?

No, it’s not him. Too tall. I would still submit him as a potential match.

 

[OnlyS]

I can see some similarities between him and the Doe. He’s just too tall and too heavy. The Doe was 5’1”, this guy is 5’2”-5’3”. Not terribly far off. Not the busboy I was talking about but I believe he’s close enough to be a potential match.

I wonder if this is an estimate from family, so could be a guess for the height. I know I am rubbish at height estimation so would only be able to do it in relation to another person. I thought he may have lost weight if he hadn’t been eating as well as before. It will be so wonderful to find a match for him.
Glad to have you in the group to add some local knowledge Glad it’s not your busboy too.

 

[EmiliaRT007]

I wonder if this is an estimate from family, so could be a guess for the height. I know I am rubbish at height estimation so would only be able to do it in relation to another person. I thought he may have lost weight if he hadn’t been eating as well as before. It will be so wonderful to find a match for him.
Glad to have you in the group to add some local knowledge Glad it’s not your busboy too.

It could be. They’re close enough in height. I went unconscious and unidentified for a few days. I had just turned 13 and had a seizure on the bike trails. During my time as a (living) Jane Doe I was measured at 4’10”. My parents estimated me to be 4’8” when describing me to the hospital where I stayed (they never reported me missing because they knew I was in the hospital and I had a history of seizures) so that hindered my ID luckily not too bad though.

Edit: I was a late bloomer, just 86 lbs, and had a babyface so I was estimated to be around 8-11 years old.

 

[OnlyS]

It could be. They’re close enough in height. I went unconscious and unidentified for a few days. I had just turned 13 and had a seizure on the bike trails. During my time as a (living) Jane Doe I was measured at 4’10”. My parents estimated me to be 4’8” when describing me to the hospital where I stayed (they never reported me missing because they knew I was in the hospital and I had a history of seizures) so that hindered my ID luckily not too bad though.

Edit: I was a late bloomer, just 86 lbs, and had a babyface so I was estimated to be around 8-11 years old.

Wow, glad they found you. It does show how it is often based on perception though. What is tall to one person may not be to another and the same with age.

 

[EmiliaRT007]

Wow, glad they found you. It does show how it is often based on perception though. What is tall to one person may not be to another and the same with age.

Yup, happy I was found too. It sucked being there nameless. I was in a coma for 2 days all from a 20 minute seizure. :/

 

[Jamie1128]

Wow, this is so sad and over a year later! Can’t help but think there’s a family somewhere wondering where their son has gone.

Has no one taken DNA from this guy? I know that maybe they didn’t do that because he was alive initially, and didn’t die in suspicious circumstance (ie homocide)

But if they put his DNA into a database like gedmatch or ancestry or something perhaps they could narrow it down massively. Find a more accurate origin of ethnicity and find a relative. If they find say a 2nd or 3rd cousin match. That narrows it right down to a hand full of people. Then you can start building a family tree around that person to connect a link and find if anyone in that family unit is missing or unaccounted for.

I’m just perplexed this sort of investigation has not been carried out. It seems like this case has got shockingly low descriptions and media.

 

[EmiliaRT007]

Wow, this is so sad and over a year later! Can’t help but think there’s a family somewhere wondering where their son has gone.

Has no one taken DNA from this guy? I know that maybe they didn’t do that because he was alive initially, and didn’t die in suspicious circumstance (ie homocide)

But if they put his DNA into a database like gedmatch or ancestry or something perhaps they could narrow it down massively. Find a more accurate origin of ethnicity and find a relative. If they find say a 2nd or 3rd cousin match. That narrows it right down to a hand full of people. Then you can start building a family tree around that person to connect a link and find if anyone in that family unit is missing or unaccounted for.

I’m just perplexed this sort of investigation has not been carried out. It seems like this case has got shockingly low descriptions and media.

Yeah. You’d think at his age he may have had social media or friends on social media who recognized the reconstruction of him.

 

[Gemmie]

5'1" 112#, he was tiny. I agree probably a teen. Houston, but I wonder if he was an illegal immigrant. I wonder what the cause of death was? Doesn't look like it would be starvation even though he's so small.

Hispanics males (and females) can be really small. Not all though. I know because I'm half. My father and brother were this guys size, and my grandmother was something like 4' 9". Her husband (my G'father who I never met) wasn't much taller than her that I can tell from pics. And some in their 20s, 30s, and even 40s can look super young. Well, not look like teenagers in their 40's but definitely when in their 20s.

My source is my family so nothing I can post to prove that so call it JMO and my experience.

 

[Gemmie]

He looks so young to me, like a high schooler. I can't imagine him being over 18/19 at the oldest.

I can imagine him being older than 18/19. A lot in my family look super young for our ages. We're called baby faces. lol I was IDed at a grocery store once buying wine and my BFs kids (15/16 yrs old) laughed at me that their dad's GF was carded. I was like... laugh on but it's a GOOD thing to be carded when you're many years over the limit. It's when they DON'T card you because you look old enough when you aren't!

So yeah, I'd give this guys age a wide range from teen to even late 20s. MAYBE even early 30s.

 

[EmiliaRT007]

I can imagine him being older than 18/19. A lot in my family look super young for our ages. We're called baby faces. lol I was IDed at a grocery store once buying wine and my BFs kids (15/16 yrs old) laughed at me that their dad's GF was carded. I was like... laugh on but it's a GOOD thing to be carded when you're many years over the limit. It's when they DON'T card you because you look old enough when you aren't!

So yeah, I'd give this guys age a wide range from teen to even late 20s. MAYBE even early 30s.

Yup! I’m of Eastern European descent but even my family all looks young. I’m in my late teens and I look 11. Some of the thirty somethings look like teenagers.

 

[ChatteringBirds]

I may be wrong, and sometimes the professional estimating someone's age makes a significant error, but they look at various factors to try to determine age. For example, they look at growth of teeth and bones. JMO.

 

[Gemmie]

I may be wrong, and sometimes the professional estimating someone's age makes a significant error, but they look at various factors to try to determine age. For example, they look at growth of teeth and bones. JMO.

Very good point. My posts were addressing posts saying he looked like a teen, not facts from professionals. If pros say 18/19.... then I'm good with that. My posts were addressing how people can look younger than they actually are.

 

[EmiliaRT007]

Very good point. My posts were addressing posts saying he looked like a teen, not facts from professionals. If pros say 18/19.... then I'm good with that. My posts were addressing how people can look younger than they actually are.

Yeah. Like I said, people guess I’m in fifth grade. I’m actually a late teen. It is annoying sometimes. I’m 5’2”, 110 pounds, flat as a board, and have a baby face. It’s only when I start speaking do people believe I’m a young woman. I have a very deep voice for a female, especially of my size. He could be older. Like 20-25. He could just be like me. Small and with a baby face. My friend is 20, he’s a tiny guy. 4’11” and 80 pounds. He doesn’t have anything wrong, he’s just a really small person.

 

[Lusitana]

I mean, people look younger and older than what they really are. He might be younger or older. I just wish someone recognized him. He had to have at least one friend or someone that knew him. He was a kid.

 

[Tahlia Woodson]

I'm curious as to what they used to determine his age and why the Texas Department of Public Safety gives his estimated age range higher than other sources with 16 - 24 y/o. Determining age from bones and teeth is usually the most common route (AFAIK) and with younger people, those estimates are often very narrow. Heck, Tammy Alexander's estimated age was also 13 - 19 like this boy's OG estimated age and she was smack dab in the middle at 16. And when they gave her age they stated that she had "lack of bone development for someone over 18 years old". (Question 6 AGE RELATED). So wouldn't this boy be similar? Even in the slightest?
Another case with an age range like this (including the TDoPS est.) was Tammy Terrell's with 13 - 25 y/o. And she was 17 - so still not over 18.
So IMO I think this boy might not be older than 18/19. But I'm not a medical examiner, I'm just using other cases as references.

 

[Jamie1128]

This case is so desperately sad, I just can’t get it out of my head, we would be lying if we didn’t say we shed a tear looking at those photos. I’ve scrolled through 100s of these pages. And this is the one that just sticks in my brain. This case is so extremely unique and different.

The fact he was smartly dressed looked fresh. Far from homeless. With the new haircut. I wonder what must have been going through his head. In those final desperate alone moments.

I’m so shocked at the lack of media attention this got, almost as if it slid through the net. And now he’s just a county burial somewhere as John Doe, makes me chronically sad. Now I’m sure they do an outstanding job the authorities, but the lack of media attention really makes me wonder how much investigation has been done? Did they just upload him to NAMUS and bury him? Has there been DNA tracing, etc. the media radio silence is unbearable and depressing.

I just hope this gets solved. Because the longer this goes on the more the hope fades.

I can’t help thinking that there’s a mother … a father… brother.. sister or grandparents out there wondering what happened maybe from another city or something because you wouldn’t find this sort of information unless you specifically searched this area for it. The family may not be like us they wouldn’t know what NAMUS is, or what if the family think he’s living in another city and isn’t even away that he’s missing (a far reach given it’s now been over a year; but you never know)

Either way I’m determined to make sure this forum keeps going and at least we don’t forget his memory. That’s the only thing that makes me feel better. At least we care and remember him, even if he’s John Doe. Because everyone comes from somewhere… nobody is a nobody, everyone is a someone.

 

[EmiliaRT007]

This case is so desperately sad, I just can’t get it out of my head, we would be lying if we didn’t say we shed a tear looking at those photos. I’ve scrolled through 100s of these pages. And this is the one that just sticks in my brain. This case is so extremely unique and different.

The fact he was smartly dressed looked fresh. Far from homeless. With the new haircut. I wonder what must have been going through his head. In those final desperate alone moments.

I’m so shocked at the lack of media attention this got, almost as if it slid through the net. And now he’s just a county burial somewhere as John Doe, makes me chronically sad. Now I’m sure they do an outstanding job the authorities, but the lack of media attention really makes me wonder how much investigation has been done? Did they just upload him to NAMUS and bury him? Has there been DNA tracing, etc. the media radio silence is unbearable and depressing.

I just hope this gets solved. Because the longer this goes on the more the hope fades.

I can’t help thinking that there’s a mother … a father… brother.. sister or grandparents out there wondering what happened maybe from another city or something because you wouldn’t find this sort of information unless you specifically searched this area for it. The family may not be like us they wouldn’t know what NAMUS is, or what if the family think he’s living in another city and isn’t even away that he’s missing (a far reach given it’s now been over a year; but you never know)

Either way I’m determined to make sure this forum keeps going and at least we don’t forget his memory. That’s the only thing that makes me feel better. At least we care and remember him, even if he’s John Doe. Because everyone comes from somewhere… nobody is a nobody, everyone is a someone.

Yeah. Someone somewhere is out here looking for this poor guy. He’s someone’s son. Someone’s friend. Someone’s cousin, grandson, nephew, brother, perhaps someone’s uncle or father (could be he was young or was in his 20s), maybe someone’s boyfriend. Someone has to be missing this guy somewhere! He may not have his name now, but he is not “nobody”.

I cried looking at his pictures. I’m around the same age as this guy, on the upper end of his age estimate. I’m a late teen between 16 and 19. Not giving away my real age for privacy reasons. I was almost in this guy’s shoes. I have autism and I was bullied very badly all throughout school. I still am. I attempted to hang myself when I was 10. Only 10. The fact that I could have been in his shoes is so sad. So young. He had his whole life ahead of him. I truly hope this man found peace and he’s having a great time in the afterlife. God bless his precious soul.

I wonder if he was a victim of bullying. He committed suicide, we know that. He could be a high schooler, in fact I find that quite likely. Probably a junior or senior based on how old he looks. He’s very short, 5’1”, about eight inches shorter than the average man. That’s a trait many people get bullied for. That’s just something that struck me. He seems like, at such a small size, an easy target for bullying. Dude was tiny. Anyone could just knock him down with one punch.

Perhaps he struggled with depression or anxiety, I find that the most likely.

He is somebody. His body may be all we could find, but his soul lives on. He has a name. And it’s not John Doe. We just have to find out what his name is. I’m shocked they didn’t even talk about him on the news. The lack of communication and respect for this young man is so sad. He was just thrown away and forgotten by LE, I feel like.

This case is one of the cases I focus on. If you read my previous comments you’ll know that I think I have seen him before. I tell him every day that I’m thinking of him and hoping he gets identified. I know my message is sent to him in the afterlife, and we are working together on it.