A man whose identity had remained a mystery since he died over 20 years ago has finally been identified, thanks to groundbreaking genealogy techniques.
The man was found alive but unconscious on the sidewalk of Third Avenue and West Madison Street in Phoenix in August 2004. He was taken to a local hospital, where he died of heat exposure. Medics and police at the time were unable to discern his name, and no next of kin came forward.
He was 6 feet, 2 inches tall, with scars on his abdomen and forearms, and he was estimated to be 30 to 55 years old.
Phoenix police followed the standard process of identification — entering fingerprints and a DNA sample into police databases — but had no success for decades.
However, after a series of specialist genealogy labs collaborated with authorities on the John Doe case, two living third cousins were identified, and the man has been confirmed as John Thiellesen.
According to police in Toledo, Ohio, who appealed for information on his whereabouts as recently as 2023, Thiellesen was reported missing there by his brother in 2004. Police said Thiellesen suffered from mental health problems and called his sister to say he had "cleansed himself" and was planning to jump into a river.
It's unclear how he ended up in Phoenix.
The breakthrough in identifying Thiellesen came after the medical examiner in Maricopa County referred the case to the Ramapo College Investigative Genetic Genealogy Center in New Jersey in September.
From there, a blood sample was sent to genomic researchers at Genelogue in Georgia and then to Parabon Nanolabs in Virginia for bioinformatics research.
The resulting genotype was uploaded to DNA databases, and undergraduates and staff members at Ramapo searched in vain for a match.
Then, between the last day of the semester and the winter break, the staff found the cousins, and Christen Eggers, the senior medicolegal death investigator in the Maricopa County Medical Examiner’s Office, confirmed the body was that of Thiellesen.
Eggers said in a statement that the college's work "has become a beacon of hope for individuals and families across the nation" whose loved ones have gone missing.
Cairenn Binder, assistant director of the IGG Center at Ramapo, said: "This case showcases the power of investigative genetic genealogy to close longstanding missing persons cases. Every John and Jane Doe is the answer to a family missing a loved one, and we will continue to do everything in our power to keep restoring their names and providing those answers."
The IGG center has helped solve 28 cases and is working on 39 others.
