Chicago John Doe/”Joseph Samuel” (February 2025)
- DATE OF DISCOVERY: February 20th, 2025
- LOCATION OF DISCOVERY: Chicago, Cook County, Illinois, 60619, USA (41°45’05.4″N 87°36’45.5″W (41.75150384, -87.61262525))
- ESTIMATED YEAR OF DEATH: Not stated
- POSTMORTEM INTERVAL1: Not stated
- CONDITION OF REMAINS: Not recognizable – Decomposition/putrefaction
- CAUSE OF DEATH: Asphyxiation (hanging)
- MANNER OF DEATH: Suicide
- SEX: Male
- ESTIMATED AGE GROUP/RANGE: NamUs notes an age group of “Adult – Pre 30”, Cook County ME states an age range of “21 – 30 years old”
- RACE: African American
- WEIGHT (ESTIMATED): 135 pounds (61.235 kg)
- HEIGHT (ESTIMATED): 6’0” (72 inches; 182.88 cm)
- EYE COLOUR: Unknown
- HAIR: NamUs states “bald, shaved head”, Cook County ME states “short stubble”. (possibly black due to facial hair)
- DISTINGUISHING MARKS/FEATURES:
- Small black moustache and beard
BACKGROUND
On February 20th, 2025, a maintenance employee of a building located at 7856 South Eberhart Avenue in Chicago, Illinois, entered unit #312 “…for potential repairs” when they discovered a deceased individual. The unit was reportedly abandoned, though it is not stated how long for.
At approximately 4:14 p.m., Chicago Police contacted the “Forensic Institute” (assuming this means the Robert J. Stein Institute of Forensic Medicine) to report the death of an unidentified individual.
The victim had committed suicide by hanging.
The victim is described as an African American male aged between 21 to 30 years old. He weighed approximately 135 pounds and stood at approximately 6’0” in height. He had a shaved head with potential short stubble, possibly black in colour. He also had a small black moustache and beard.
The man was found wearing a gray and red striped long-sleeve hooded shirt, camel-coloured denim pants, blue high-top sneakers, black socks, and a light blue head scarf (noted as “durag” on NamUs but “head scarf” by the Medical Examiner)
The Medical Examiner noted a potential name of “Joashua Samuel” for this Doe. I am not sure how this was determined. Sadly, there is not much information on this Doe.
The photo included is a stock image of the same shoes found with the victim, in the same colourway.
CLOTHING/ITEMS – On the body, the following was noted
- Gray and red striped long-sleeve hooded shirt (Brand “ON THE BYAS”; size “Small”)
- Camel-coloured denim pants (Brand “Bullhead Dillon”; size “30/30”)
- Two blue high-top sneakers (Brand “Fila”; style/type “A-High Fade”; size “8.5”)
- Two black socks (No brand or size noted)
- Light blue head scarf/durag
NOTES – Things of note or discrepancies found during research
- 1 POSTMORTEM INTERVAL – Cook County Medical Examiner notes the Date of Incident as “02/20/2025 04:18:00 PM” and his Date of Death as “02/20/2025 03:55:00 PM” which is an approximate PMI of 23 minutes, but NamUs notes that he was not recognizable due to decomposition/putrefaction. NamUs also notes the time as 4:14 p.m. rather than 4:18 p.m.
IDENTIFIERS – I could not find any information regarding identifiers
- Dentals: Unknown
- Fingerprints: Unknown
- DNA: Unknown
INVESTIGATING AGENCY & OTHER CASE INFORMATION
AGENCY ONE
- Agency Name: Chicago Police Department – 2nd District
- Agency Phone Number: 312-747-8366
- Agency Case Number: JJ 155910
AGENCY TWO
- Agency Name: Cook County Medical Examiner’s Office / Robert J. Stein Institute of Forensic Medicine
- Agency Contact Person: Ponni Arunkumar, M.D. (Chief Medical Examiner)
- Agency Phone Number: 312-666-0500
- Agency Email: MEO.unknowns@cookcountyil.gov / medical.examiner@cookcountyil.gov
- Agency Case Number: ME2025-01142
OTHER INFORMATION/CASE NUMBERS
- NamUs Case Number: #UP143615
REFERENCES
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