Decades-Long Mystery of Oklahoma Lake Solved, Missing Six Bodies Identified
A decades-long mystery of missing people in Oklahoma was solved after officials confirmed that identification of bodies found in 2013. Officials identified two groups of people including some teenagers who went missing in 1969 and 1970.
The six people whose bodies had been found in a western Oklahoma lake in 2013 were identified. A spokesperson for the state medical examiner confirmed that the mystery of the missing people was finally solved. Reuters reported that Oklahoma Highway Patrol divers found a couple of vehicles in September 2013 while testing the new sonar equipment. The vehicles, covered in rust and mud, were just some feet apart at the bottom of Foss Lake. Each of the vehicles had three corpses in them. Elliott said that the two cars were three feet apart in around 12 feet of water near the main concrete boat dock of the lake. According to authorities, a road narrowing into the dock should explain how the cars ended up in the lake.
According to spokeswoman Amy Elliott, the cause of death of the six people had been ascertained to be probable drowning, which might have happened after an accident. One of the vehicles, a 1952 Chevrolet, had three adults, who went missing from Canute. The three adults went missing in 1969. DNA testing confirmed that the three adults were Nora Marie Duncan, 58, Cleburn Hammack, 42 and John Alva Porter, 69.
The bodies also included those of three teenagers from Oklahoma that went missing on Nov. 20, 1970. They reportedly attended a football game in Elk City, Oklahoma. They went missing while they were on their way home. The teenagers were identified as Thomas Michael Rios, 18, Leah Gail Johnson, 18, and Jimmy Allen Williams, 16. The bodies of the teenagers were found in a 1969 Camaro. Fox 8 News reported that 16-year-old Williams had bought the used Camaro only six days before the accident. The Sayre Record and Beckham County Democrat newspaper publisher Dayva Spitzer said that 18-year-old Johnson, a Native American, was related to legendary Indian chief Sitting Bull. Johnson was apparently regarded as an Indian princess by her neighbours. Spitzer said that the group of teenagers might have gone hunting instead of going to the football match.
Contact the writer: s.mukhopadhyay@ibtimes.com.au