Most interesting unsolved non-serial killer cases

[harry]

An interesting case is that of the 'Somerton Man'.it has more than one mystery.How did he die? Was he murdered? What is the meaning of the code that was left?Who was he? A full report,together with a copy of the code is available by entering'Somerton Man' in the search box of the leading search sites.Google for instance.W orth a look.

[The Grave Maurice]

Thanks, harry. I'd never heard of the Somerton case and it's quite interesting. I can't seem to find any books about it, though. Anyone know of any?

[sdreid]

Yes, thanks Harry. I'd seen that listed on Unsolved Deaths in Wiki but did not read up on it in detail before. Nothing but mysteries there even whether the death was murder, suicide, accident or natural, the first two looking to be the most likely. It's so bizarre that an adult can die and not be missed by anyone.

[harry]

Thanks for the above posts.There has never,to my knowledge,been a book written,partly I believe because there is so little known.The case is periodically rehashed in the local paper here,and an attempt by Adelaide University personnel to decipher the code,is at present underway.I have been interested in the case for some years,and emailed the university a couple of days ago,to air my views.
I would like you to study the code to see if there is anything there that seems suggestive.There is one thing that interests me.I wonder whether you might reach a conclusion similar to mineIt is indeed an interesting case.
Though 1948 is a while ago,I believe the 'Somerton Man' is possible for a solution.
Harry.

[The Grave Maurice]

Well, I've spent some time looking at the code, if that's what it is, and I can make nothing of it. Neither can the friends and family members I've shown it to today. But I'd be interested in hearing your thoughts, Harry, since you have obviously been thinking about it for a while.

[harry]

Maurice,
Thanks for your interest.Here is a suggestion,or if you like an assumtion.It relates to the last three letters as they appear on the origininal message,a copy of which appears in the Wiki Pedia article.Those last three letters I conclude are written in script,and not block capitals as is the rest of the code,and they are joined.They are ,I would say,the initials of the person found dead.He is initialing his message.G.A.B.
As for the message in general,I believe it to relate to his being there,and that last day.
The first letter.W. 'Wednesday' the 30th November,the day he arrived.Second and third letters.RG. 'Reached Glenelg'.
I do live just a few miles from Glenelg,and have studied the history of the locality.I did begin a search through the State archives,following an Idea,but health and age cut that short.I am now following closely the latest interest here.I have an idea of how he died,and I do not believe anything sinister was involved.
Regards.

[The Grave Maurice]

Hiya Harry,

Your idea that the last letters of the message might be the dead man's initials seems perfectly reasonable to me. Well observed. It must be nice to have a good mystery that is, more or less, in your neighbourhood, to work on. Since you seem to know so much about it, I suggest that you think about writing the first book on the subject. I, for one, would be happy to buy it.

[sdreid]

Although she was identified, it reminds me a little of the unsolved Starr Faithfull Case here in the States.

[The Grave Maurice]

Well, that's another case I know nothing about, Stan. Could you direct me to the relevant info?

[sdreid]

Hi GM,

I think if you Google "Starr Faithfull" you should get plenty. She was a young woman who was found dead on a New York beach in 1931. Starr was from a well-to-do family but led a life filled with secrets. It was never proven whether she was murdered, was a suicide or an accident. There were drugs in her system and the actual cause of death was shown to be drowning but sand was found in her lungs which indicated that it apparently occurred in very shallow water. There were also signs of beating and sexual activity. She was wearing only a dress, no undergarments or shoes, when found.

[Dupplin Muir]

Hi Harry

Thanks for bringing this case to my attention, as I can't recall having heard of it before. I've looked at the Wikipedia article on the case, and based on that I'd like to offer the following off-the-cuff observations.

Initially I considered that the discovery of the piece of paper in a concealed pocket swung the balance of probabilities in favour of murder rather than suicide, because it is easy to imagine a killer going through the victim's pockets to remove anything which might serve to identify him, and overlooking this pocket. However, on second thoughts it all seems a bit too convenient. Why was the book thrown into the car? If the aim was to get rid of it, why not burn it or throw it into the sea? It seems to me that someone wanted the police to make the connection with the body. However, if this surmise is true then it suggests that the list of letters is, at best, disinformation, and at worst complete nonsense.

As for the enigmatic letters, my feeling is that they are some kind of mnemonic or acronym rather than a cipher. The reason I say this is if we look at the second line (the one that has been crossed out) and compare it with the fourth line, it looks as though the writer's eye has skipped a letter, missing out the 'B'. The last letter in the second line, which is said to be 'I' could actually be one of the legs of an 'A', or possibly the writer's eye skipped again. At this point the writer realised he had missed out a letter, crossed out what he had written and started again. It appears that he was looking at a list or phrase and was taking the initial letters of each word or line. When you do this it is quite easy to miss out a letter.

On the other hand, if the letters are a cipher then I think it is very unlikely that it will ever be solved: there is insufficient text to do this. Even a simple substitution cipher would be difficult to crack under these circumstances.

If the letters do represent a mnemonic or abbreviation, then it is very likely that they refer to something that is in common usage. We don't tend to use mnemonics for everyday events: for example I wouldn't write RTGTTSAGAPOS for 'Remember To Go To The Supermarket And Get A Pound Of Sausages'! However, we do use abbreviations for everyday phrases (ROTFLMAO) or lists (JFMAMJJASOND).

Lastly, has anyone suggested doing an isotopic analysis of the dead man's tooth-enamel, as this might tell us where he was brought up?

DM

[harry]

DM,
Thanks for the post.A professor and students at the Adelaide universty are now renewing an attempt to explain the message.As well,there has been talk of an exhumation
to enable testing to be done,as it is felt up to date methods might bring forth evidence that was missed in 1948.It is generally believed that the person was European.
I feel that one fact is evident.Glenelg, or it's immediate neighbourhood, was a pre determined destination.Although a train ticket was bought for Henley Beach,which is some miles further along the coast,that might be that when arriving at the station,the person looked for trains that would take him in the general direction,and saw only Henley Beach.Later,made aware of a bus service that would take him direct to Glenelg,he opted for that.
The missed piece of paper in the fob pocket might indicate that the first searches of the clothing was not as expert as might be expected.The paper being that small it would show no bulge,so a cursory examination might easily miss it.
As to cause of death,might it have been due to a Diabetic condition?My wife,a diabetic,has on two occasions fallen into a comotose condition,and only my presence and the immediate call for an ambulance saved her,I was told on both occasions,that a long delay with no medical attention,could cause a coma and even death.Did that happen in the Somerton case?It might explain the lack of movement or convulsion,so that even the cigarrette was not shaken free.
Regards

[sdreid]

Hi Harry,

With the Shirley Collins Case in 1953, it looks like Australia was the place for unsolved murders involving the possibility that someone got off the train at the wrong station.

[Dupplin Muir]

Hi Harry

My best guess is (rather boringly) that the man committed suicide, but that he decided to try and create a lasting mystery about his death: hence the piece of paper, the book, and the mysterious letters. However, you raise a good point about the cigarette, since it would certainly rule out any poison that causes the victim to writhe about and/or have convulsions. On the other hand, dying in a diabetic coma doesn't really explain how the book ended up in someone's car!

This started me thinking about possible poisons that don't cause the victim to move about and I was wondering if it might have been coniine (hemlock) or even curare! Apparently some witnesses saw the man sitting on the beach and said that he raised his hand as if smoking, and I wondered if this was an attempt to call for help as he was gradually paralysed by the drug. Unfortunately I don't know enough to say whether these drugs would have been detected during the post-mortem.

I suppose one of the remaining enigmas is the phone number of 'Jestey'. She admitted giving a copy of the Rubaiyat to one of her boyfriends, so I wonder if she might have done the same for another, though this raises the issue of why she denied knowing the victim.

The dead man seems to have been exceptionally fit for his age, and his deformed toes and the muscular development of his calves would suggest that he had been working in some really unusual trade or profession. Off the top of my head, he might have been some kind of circus performer, or something like an Argentinian gaucho (really wild surmise there!). I followed up some of the links on Wikipedia and noted that it has been suggested that he was ex-military, but if he really was aged 40-45 then he was probably too old for front-line service in WWII, unless he was an officer.

Best regards

DM

[harry]

DM,
Perhaps the most vexing thing about the dead man is the the lack of information on his identity and background.If that were known then the mystery of his presence at Glenelg,might more easily be explained.It appears he came as a complete stranger with no previous ties to the area,that there were no friend or family to welcome him,and that he died alone,leaving just a book with a message,and that just doesn't sit well with me.I am sure their was some previous association with the place,and that it went back a long time.The nurse certainly needs some explanation.
Stan,
There has been some infamous crimes in Australia.The'Gatton Mystery' must rank as one of the most mysterious and brutal acts of murder,and the disappearance of the three children from Glenelg in 1966 is still unsolved. As to serial killings,'The bodies in the barrels' and the so called'Family Murders' are unsurpassed for sheer callousness.
Regards.