Cold Case Tuesday: The New York State Police at Monroe continue to investigate the homicide of an unidentified male in Orange County.

The New York State Police is asking for the public’s assistance to identify a murder victim found on January 20, 1969 in Tuxedo, NY.

The victim, a white male, approximately 5’5, between 45 and 55 years old, weighing approximately 145 lbs, was found in a brook approximately a quarter mile from Route 17.

The man, known only known as John Doe, was discovered wearing brown pants, brown socks and a white undershirt.

The victim was also found wearing a gold Saint Christopher medal and a Longine Wittnaur watch that had been repaired in New Jersey in January of 1967. No records existed at the time to identify this victim. The watch had been sold initially in 1962 in New York City, again without any tracible records.

An investigation revealed the victim had been shot in the head.  An autopsy concluded that the victim was killed sometime in 1968, as the body was badly composed.

A number of murder victims were found dumped in Orange County and the surrounding counties in the late 1960s and 70s.  It was believed that this case, and the others were mob related.

In August 1968, the bodies of Frank Gangi and Frank Tuminaro were found dumped off a road in Sullivan County.  Tuminaro’s brother, Angelo Tuminaro, a.k.a. Little Angie, was a major drug importer within the Luchese Cosa Nostra crime family of New York.  It was alleged that “Little Angie” was one of the masterminds behind the French Connection in 1962 and follow-up thefts from the NYPD evidence lockers in the late 1960’s and early 1970’s.

In February 1970, the body of another John Doe was found shot and killed in Saugerties, NY.  He was found frozen, wearing a suit with pajamas underneath near the Persico family owned farm.  Carmine Persico was a boss in the Colombo crime family.

In February 1972, a frozen torso was located in the trunk of a 1965 Dodge Dart that had been set on fire off Route 17 in Blooming Grove, NY.  The torso was later identified as Louis J. Mileto of Bellmore, NY.   Mileto delivered heroin for Herbert Sperling.  Sperling had business ties to the Gambino Crime Family, Harlem’s Nicky Barnes and numerous other criminal organizations.

On August 10, 1972, the person who took over for Mileto, Carlo Lombardi, was shot in the head and dumped on State Route 17 in Sullivan County. Lombardi’s girlfriend was also shot, but would survive and later testify and identify the shooters.

In our featured cold case, the 1969 John Doe investigation is the oldest unidentified person case in New York State.

Records are kept in NCIC, the National Crime Information Center and NAMUS, the National Institute of Justice’s National Missing and Unidentified Persons System databases.

To date, no family has come forward to help identify this victim.

New York State Police are hoping someone connected to the investigation, or with information will be able to assist in identifying John Doe.

Any family members can provide a familial DNA sample, which is only allowed to be used for purposes of identifying missing and unidentified persons.

Numerous leads have been followed over the years with this case, and DNA and facial reconstruction will be done in hopes of identifying the victim.

If anyone has information on this case, please contact the New York State Police at Monroe BCI at 845-782-8311 and all calls will be confidential.

Medal worn by victim                           Watch worn by victim