Even after lastly figuring out the stays of a John Doe discovered close to a refinery in Cheyenne in 2023, authorities nonetheless have a thriller on their fingers.
The person, who has been recognized as 61-year-old Neal D. Samson, was found by employees on the Sinclair refinery in November 2023.
Laramie County Coroner Rebecca Reid introduced Wednesday that the stays are Samson’s, however launched few particulars about how he was recognized aside from crediting the Wyoming Prison Division of Prison Investigation for its DNA evaluation that made it attainable.
For months, the coroner’s workplace tried to determine him, together with releasing 3-D images ready by a forensic artist final November.
It’s unclear if the pictures led to the invention of the person’s title or if different forensic strategies had been used within the identification.
Reid’s workplace didn’t reply to a request for added details about methodology or whether or not Samson’s household performed a job in figuring out him.
Preliminary makes an attempt to determine him had been unsuccessful, regardless of having his DNA as a result of there weren’t hits within the Nationwide DNA Index System of CODIS, the FBI’s Mixed DNA Index System, or the Nationwide Lacking and Unidentified Individuals System (NamUs).
Dental prints, likewise, proved ineffective with out prints to check them to.
It’s additionally unclear how Samson died, although Reid mentioned in earlier correspondence that no foul play was suspected, and that Samson’s trigger and method of loss of life are undetermined.
No Foul Play
No foul play is suspected in Samson’s loss of life, and his case has been closed, mentioned Aaron Veldheer, chief deputy of operations on the Laramie County Sheriff’s Workplace.
Veldheer mentioned he had been on website the place Samson was discovered and that there was no proof to counsel foul play.
Samson’s badly decomposed stays had been found by employees who had been doing excavation work.
He additionally didn’t know something about Samson or his historical past in Cheyenne.
Veldheer mentioned Samson’s household and subsequent of kin have been notified of his loss of life however couldn’t present any particulars about the place Samson or his household reside.
Arrest data point out he was a transient with a handful of public intoxication citations, however Samson’s title doesn’t seem on any state or nationwide lacking particular person databases.
Veldheer additional credited the coroner for her diligent work in making the identification in addition to the general public’s endurance.
“We admire everybody’s endurance on this,” he mentioned. “These instances are actually troublesome as a result of they take a very long time to positively determine that particular person.”
Jen Kocher might be reached at jen@cowboystatedaily.com.
