UK UK - Birmingham, WhtMale, 40-50, Striped Jumper, Velcro Shoes, in Canal, Nov'10

[Gardener1850]

Body found in city canal still not been identified seven years on

Now, police have issued a fresh appeal in a bid to put a name to the John Doe, discovered in the Birmingham and Fazeley Canal stretch at Erdington.

Despite the case receiving high-profile media coverage at the time, and an e-fit image of the man produced, officers are still in the dark about who was dredged from the cut. No family members have come forward.

It is believed the dead man may have been homeless.

We know that the man, discovered on November 4, 2010, was white and aged 40 to 50. He was wearing a cream, striped jumper and shoes with Velcro fasteners.The body had been in the murky water for up to two days. It was found at around 8am by workers from nearby factories bordering Tyburn Road.
One said at the time: “They found the body in the water. The canal is a bit out of the way behind there, but it is also used by a lot of people.”
Specialist rescue units from West Midlands Fire Service were called in and there were fingertip searches by police. A police helicopter was even brought in.

See Sketch at link:
https://www.msn.com/en-gb/news/news...not-been-identified-seven-years-on/ar-BBIGG4j

 

[Gardener1850]

https://www.birminghammail.co.uk/news/midlands-news/body-found-city-canal-still-14244926

 

[MelmothTheLost]

He seems to have been under-dressed for November if he didn't have a coat. The police don't say how he died but presumably it was from natural causes since they don't mention his death being suspicious. Either his body was too decomposed for fingerprints or he wasn't known to the police before his death. I'd have thought that if they haven't done so already they should:

1. Run his fingerprints through other European databases in case he's not British; and
2. Do an isotope analysis to try to narrow down his place of origin.

I'd be very surprised if they've not done 1 but they may not have done 2.

 

[Melt71]

The Tragic Unexplained Cases of the 7 Unidentified Bodies in Our Area
28 October 2019
www.coventrytelegraph.net/news/coventry-news/unidentified-bodies-west-midlands-warwickshire-17153907


....... He had no distinguishing features, but was found wearing a brown two-piece Burton suit, with a blue checked shirt and an orange and white pullover.

The most recent body found in the West Midlands that has left police stumped is a male that was recovered from the Birmingham and Fazeley Canal at Edington, at 8am on November 4, 2010.

The body was believed to have been in the water for between 23 and 44 hours.

In that case, the man was also identified as being between 40 and 50 years old, of white European descent, 170cm tall, of medium build and with greying hair and facial stubble.

The body was recovered wearing a dark jumper with white or cream horizontal stripes, and black shoes with velcro fasteners.......