There is some decent information in the video. Specifically that he was wearing black jungle boots with the name John Durfee stenciled in them (see article below video) and that he was born in Bluefield West Virginia. According to another article John Durfee was located and said he sold the boots to a Chicago pawn shop.
Identity of man killed by a drunk driver still unknown after almost half a century By GREG JORDAN Bluefield Daily Telegraph Feb 5, 2018 GHENT — Almost 50 years ago, a young pedestrian hiking along the U.S. 19-21 bypass near Beckley was killed when a drunk driver struck him, but today he remains unidentified. Aside from old newspaper stories, the only reminder of his existence is a gravestone in a Flat Top cemetery. The memorial at the Tom Lilly Cemetery near Flat Top bears the words “Known Only to God,” “Unknown Male” along with the date of his death – July 23, 1972 – and his probable age, which was between 19 and 21 years old. Today people are still attempting to identify this young man and bring closure to his family, Vernon L. Simmons, a retired Norfolk Police Department captain said. The accident which claimed the life of “John Doe” occurred on the U.S. 19-21 bypass near Beckley, according to Daily Telegraph reports from that year. Before the pedestrian accident, the man had caught a ride with a passing motorist who later told the West Virginia State Police about how the man said that he was returning to the Bluefield area from Chicago, and that the reason behind his trip was to obtain a birth certificate. According to this witness, the man walked about a half a mile before he was hit by another driver and killed instantly. In 1972, the Bluefield Daily Telegraph published stories that offer details about this unknown man. The West Virginia State Police described him as a white American male, believed to be between 18 and 20 years old. He was 5 feet, 10 inches tall and weighed between 160 and 165 pounds. His hair was described as “reddish brown,” Simmons said. His only distinguishing feature was a laceration on his left foot which was described as being similar to a glass cut: it was healed and showed no sign of sutures. The young man’s photograph was once available, but finding it after almost 50 years would be difficult. Back in August 1972, investigators said the man’s clothes didn’t have any identification except for a pair of jungle boots with the name “John Durfee” stenciled on them. John Durfee was later located; he had sold the boots to a Chicago pawn shop. Simmons said his research has indicated that the unknown man could have been a runaway youth from the Chicago area. People who believe that they could have information relating to the case can contact Simmons at 757-436-0219 or [email protected]. — Contact Greg Jordan at [email protected] https://www.bdtonline.com/news/identity-of-man-killed-by-a-drunk-driver-still-unknown/article_49f3fe4a-0a26-11e8-836e-4348255d0539.html
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Blue jeans with brown belt: belt contains flaking white paint and has a square belt buckle with a Longhorn Steer. Information from http://www.doenetwork.org/cases/149umva.html On May 27, 1987, highway workers discovered a partially decomposed body along the southbound shoulder of I-81 South, Mile Post 183. The victim died as a result of a gunshot wound to the right side of the head and right side of the body. Handwritten notes in the victims pocket referred to a truck and trailer number and the trucking firm of J.B. Hunt Trucking Company out of Lowell, Arkansas. A check of this company revealed that John Swartz was operating a tractor-trailer through Virginia at this time.
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