The September 2001 Kobe Terrace Park John Doe: A Public Records Requests Shines A Light On An Old Case And Provides An Opportunity For Further OSINT Investigation

The TL;DR: A release of photographs from a public records request about an unidentified John Doe discovered in Seattle in 2001 might contain some tantalizing clues about the travels and associations of a man who has remained unidentified for nearly 21 years.

The date: September 6th, 2001

The location: The eastern edge of Seattle’s Kobe Terrace Park on a grassy abutment above Interstate 5, and just south of the Yesler Street overpass.

The Lantern inside of Seattle’s Kobe Terrace Park — photograph taken by the Seattle Police Department on September 6th of 2001.

The discovery: the body of a quickly decomposing and unidentified man. Although this death was initially investigated as a homicide, the results were ultimately inconclusive. After nearly 21 years later this man remains: a Seattle Unknown.

A photograph showing the conditions where an unidentified deceased man was discovered on September 6th of 2001 in Seattle. The image of the man has been redacted. Imaged acquired via a public records request to the Seattle Police Department.

Less than a week before the 9/11 attacks in Washington D.C. and New York City, a little known mystery unfolded across the country in Seattle. In Seattle’s International District, above the roar of Interstate 5, a man was discovered deceased in Kobe Park, a small one acre park located above Interstate 5.

The man, who was likely homeless, was found in an advanced state of decay.

Law enforcement officials investigating the discovery of a dead man in Seattle’s Kobe Terrace Park on September 6th of 2001. Image acquired via a public records request submitted to the Seattle Police Department.

Officer John Paquette, described in a report filed at the time that the unidentified man was wearing a hooded sweatshirt and that there were “bees, flies and maggots” on his face.

Statement from an Officer John Paquette about a man who was discovered on September 6th of 2001.

Another officer, an Officer Green, detailed that following a field examination of the body by representatives of the King County Medical Examiner’s Office, suspicious wounds were said to have been found on the man.

A statement from an Officer Green. The statement describes that the Medical Examiner’s Office found suspicious wounds on the man’s body. After the discovery of the suspicious wounds, the scene was turned over to a Detective Kilburg from the Homicide Division.

After the identification of the wounds, two rocks were also found in the immediate time area. The suspicious wounds and the decaying state of the man in an obscured location led to the investigation being handed off to the homicide division of the Seattle PD. A detective named Steven Kilburg took over the investigation at the scene.

Detective Kilburg described the scene this way, and described the collection of the two suspicious rocks:

A Detective Kilburg of the Seattle Police Department’s Homicide Division described the discovery of the unidentified man and the investigation into two rocks discovered at the scene.

The rocks, which you can see here:

A rock, found in close proximity to the head of a man found dead in Seattle’s Kobe Terrace Park in September of 2001. This rock was collected as evidence and sent to the Washington State Patrol’s Crime Lab. No evidence of blood was found on the rock.

Rock collected from the site of a death investigation in Seattle’s Kobe Terrace Park in September of 2001. An investigator is surveying the scene in the background.

Were sent off to the Washington State Patrol’s Crime Lab. By September 20th, forensic scientists at the crime lab determined that there was nothing on the rocks (neither hair, nor blood, or skin) that indicated the rocks had been involved in the man’s death.

“No blood was detected on either rock.” — A Crime Laboratory Report regarding the examination of two rocks located at the site of the discovery of an unidentified dead man in Seattle’s Kobe Terrace Park.

The investigation into the possibility that the man’s death had been a homicide presumably ended at the moment when two major pieces of evidence were found to not be stained with blood. And, the man became then, and continues to be now: a Seattle Unknown.

I was intrigued when I first saw this case listed in the NamUs database. I lived in Seattle in September of 2001, and I vividly remember 9/11. I also can vividly remember moving into a new apartment the week before. I actually used to walk down nearby Yesler Way on a daily basis in 2001, and I can certainly remember walking on that overpass, and looking down at the green areas above Interstate 5.

This area has always been used by the homeless. I can recall one incident where I stopped on the Yesler overpass (right next to where this man was discovered) and looked north, up Interstate 5, towards the skyscrapers of downtown. When I glanced down, I spotted a homeless couple in flagrante delicto. The homeless woman, on her back, never stopped making eye contact with me as she and her partner continued about their business in the middle of a thicket of blackberry bushes — all the while as the roar of Interstate 5 rose from below.

Seattle has long had a problem with the homeless, I have more stories (including a homeless neighborhood fellow I was acquainted with who turned out to be wanted) than I can count. Seattle had a massive population boom in the last 15 years, which has only exacerbated the problem.

Regardless if a person is homeless or not, they don’t deserve to die an unknown. The NamUs database is filled with people (usually men) who died destitute and alone. In these cases there often could be something that might help aid in the identification.

In this instance, with this Kobe Park John Doe, there just might be some clues hidden in photographs taken at the scene which could assist in the pursuit of the identity of this person.

Let’s take a look at some of the photographs that were taken at the scene — I’ve also posted these photos in an open folder and they are also online with my Muckrock request. These photos are now in the public domain, so if you’re interested in writing a blog post or news article, feel free to use them.

Possible Clue #1 — California Related Items

So, at first glance, it just looks like a large pile of garbage. It’s hard to know if we can actually attribute these materials to this particular man, but for the sake of argument, let’s say we can. What can we see here? Well, take a look at the paperback:

Socks, shoes, and paperbacks found at the site of the discovery of a dead man in Seattle on September 6th of 2001.

It’s a copy of “The Last Days of the Late, Great State of California” written by Curt Gentry. The novel is a work of speculative fiction written in 1968.

The paperback might not mean anything. Seattle bookstores used to frequently offer cheap paperbacks for sale, and rarely a day would pass where I wouldn’t spot a pile of books left outside for the passerby to pick up. I’d say that the book itself isn’t doesn’t necessarily provide evidence of a link between the unidentified man and the state of California. But let’s just keep the possibility that the book is evidence of this in mind.

The NamUs page for this unidentified man states that he was discovered wearing a San Francisco 49ers t-shirt under his plaid shirt. Although this isn’t stated in the field reports from that day, this could also provide some evidence of a California connection. Truth be told, there were a LOT of 49ers t-shirts in second hand stores back in the day.

The NamUs listing for this unidentified dead man said he was wearing a San Francisco 49ers shirt.

So, I would guess there’s a possibility of this man being associated with the state of California.

Possible Clue #2 — Searching for Diplomatic Consulates in Chicago

But take a look at this!

At first glance, I thought it was perplexing. It’s apparently the “miscellaneous papers with name and telephone numbers located near the body.”

After I flipped the image and zoomed in, I spotted some interesting things which might provide some clues. First off, and most importantly, I see that everything is written in Spanish.

Take a glance at this one:

A pile of clothes and papers discovered next to an unidentified dead man discovered in Seattle’s Kobe Terrace Park in September of 2001.

Let’s take a closer look at the papers:

Zoomed in on a pile of papers found next to a dead man who was discovered in Seattle’s Kobe Terrace Park in September of 2001. Immediately you’ll see the Spanish language business cards — and something else intriguing.

After I flipped the image and zoomed in, I spotted some interesting things which might provide some clues. First off, and most importantly, I see that everything is written in Spanish.

Take a closer look at the piece of paper:

Zoomed in on a piece of paper found with the dead man. “Consulate” and “180 North” and “Chicago.”

I see the word “Consulate” and “180 North” and “Chica.”

Out of curiosity, I decided to run a search for diplomatic consulates located at 180 North (something) in Chicago.

A Bing search for “Consulate 180 North Chicago” — the words I believe are written on the piece of paper. Sure enough, a number of foreign consulates are located at that address.

Sure enough, there are several consulates located at 180 North Michigan Avenue in Chicago, including the Peruvian, Ecuadorian and Spanish consulates.

So, in the event this scrap of paper is connected with the John Doe, it’s now certainly within the realm of possibility that he was searching for a consulate located at 180 North Michigan Avenue in Chicago. Several Spanish speaking countries have consulates located at 180 North Michigan Avenue: Peru, Spain and Ecuador.

If he was looking for a consulate a 180 North Michigan Avenue, and if he was carrying Spanish language materials, I think it would be wise to contemplate that this man is Hispanic — and possible from Peru, Spain or Ecuador. NamUs lists him as “White” as for his race:

But then describes him as being a “white or mixed race male” under the circumstances of recovery. If I have learned anything from NamUs, it’s that race classifications are really not very useful.

Officially listed as “white” by NamUs, the notes section states he’s “white or mixed race.”

Possible Clue #3 — Business Card From A Miami Business

What else have we got with the pile of documents?

There’s this:

A business card for a place called “CAFE 2290” — the card, written in both English and Spanish, has a Miami area code of 305 and promises “Lovely Ladies to Serve Cold Beer and Wine”

It’s difficult to make out, but there’s a business card for what could possibly be a strip club called “CAFE 2290.” The area code (305) is for Miami, Florida.

I have tepidly started doing every search I could think of to find an old business. I have found a couple things, but nothing concrete. I found it curious that 2290 is an IRS term, and this would likely be the only business in the United States that used that term.

I found some Miami area (specifically Cuban) businesses, that I think might have been this place in 2001. I have met more than one Cuban who went from Miami to Seattle to work the Alaskan fishing boats — a missing Cuban would seem to be another plausible theory.

I am going to keep working on this one. I am also going to see if there’s anyone in the Reddit or Websleuths forums who might be able to spot something in these photos that I didn’t see.

If anybody out there can make out what the other business card says, this would be extremely helpful:

I’ve tried repeatedly to understand what the “SAN ROMAN” business card says.

According to the official report, all of the paper material was photocopied and saved into a file. I have no idea if the file still exists, so it is possible that this photograph is all that remains of what documents the man was carrying.

I am going to work on trying to get more eyes on this case. You can find the original request on MuckRock. The photos have been uploaded into an album. I am hopeful that this man will one day be identified and that he wont remain as a Seattle Unknown.