ORANGE COUNTY, Fla. (TCD) — Investigators recently identified a homicide victim whose remains were found over 30 years ago in a vacant lot that had been used as a vegetable farm.
According to the Orange County Sheriff’s Office, hunters first located the skeletal remnants on Oct. 2, 1993. Authorities determined the victim’s manner of death was homicide.
In a news release, Othram Inc. said deputies searched the area for additional remains and concluded the victim was 45 to 55 years old at the time of his death. However, because of the “limited information and the condition of the man’s remains, no other identifying characteristics could be determined,” and the man became a John Doe, authorities said.
The sheriff’s office submitted forensic evidence to Othram in 2023 in hopes of identifying the victim. Using forensic genetic genealogy, Othram’s team developed new leads and submitted the information to the sheriff’s office.
According to Othram, the sheriff’s office found possible family members of John Doe and obtained DNA from a potential relative to compare it to the victim’s DNA profile. On June 11, the sheriff’s office and Othram announced they identified John Doe as 48-year-old Richard Wick. Wick had reportedly moved to Florida from New York, and his family reported him missing after Wick failed to contact them for a long duration of time.