Author Topic: ISANTI JOHN DOE: WM, 20-28, found buried in Isanti, MN - 17 August 2003 *Donald Rindahl*  (Read 315 times)

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The victim was located near Highway 47 and County Road 5, on private property on August 17, 2003, when an excavator discovered a skull in a load of earth. Investigators discovered human remains at the original burial site and the site where the earth was being dumped.

The body, which was buried about three feet deep, could have been on the site since the 1970's. Investigators are treating the case as a homicide though they have no evidence of the manner of death. The depth of the grave, the location near a main highway leading out of the cities, is suspicious. Investigators have reviewed available missing person records and interviewed area residents with no success. The only other clue is a man's watch found near the remains.

The structure of the face and the dental reconstruction are very precise. Other facial details, such as the size of the ears and nose, and hair and eye color, are not known and reflect the best guess of the artist.

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https://identifyus.org/en/cases/8832

Case Information
Status Unidentified
Case number IC03-16
Date found August 17, 2003 11:30
Date created June 10, 2011 13:52
Date last modified February 22, 2017 08:28
Investigating agency
date QA reviewed June 21, 2011 04:39

Local Contact (ME/C or Other)
Agency Midwest Medical Examiner's Office
Phone 763-324-4400
Case Manager
Name Quinn Strobl
Phone 763-323-6400

Exclusions
The following people have been ruled out as being this decedent:
First Name Last Name Year of Birth State LKA
Joshua Guimond 1982 Minnesota
Harold Haynes 1954 Minnesota
Christopher Kerze 1973 Minnesota
Christopher Kerze 1973 Minnesota

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https://identifyus.org/en/cases/8832

NamUs UP # 8832

ME/C Case Number: IC03-16
Isanti County, Minnesota
20 to 28 year old White Male

Case Report - NamUs UP # 8832
Case Information
Status Unidentified
Case number IC03-16
Date found August 17, 2003 11:30
Date created June 10, 2011 13:52
Date last modified February 22, 2017 08:28
Investigating agency
date QA reviewed June 21, 2011 04:39

Local Contact (ME/C or Other)
Agency Midwest Medical Examiner's Office
Phone 763-324-4400
Case Manager
Name Quinn Strobl
Phone 763-323-6400

Demographics
Estimated age Adult - Pre 30
Minimum age 20 years
Maximum age 28 years
Race White
Ethnicity
Sex Male
Weight (pounds) , Cannot Estimate
Height (inches) 70, Estimated
Body Parts Inventory (Check all that apply)
One or more limbs not recovered
One or both hands not recovered
Body conditions
Not recognizable - Near complete or complete skeleton
Probable year of death 2000 to 2003
Estimated postmortem interval 2 Years

Circumstances

Location Found
GPS coordinates
Address 1 28914 Hwy 47
Address 2
City Isanti
State Minnesota
Zip code 55040
County Isanti
Circumstances
Skeletal remains found by owner of residence at address above while moving loads of sand with a bobcat.

Skeletal findings
ante-mortem healed fracture of the left 10th rib

Jewelry
Watch

Other items found
with body
A watch and a portion of a red and yellow blanket-like material located at scene with remains.

Dental

Status: Dental information / charting is available and entered

DNA

Status: Sample submitted - Tests complete

Images

There are currently no images available for this case.

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http://www.doenetwork.org/cases/499ummn.html

499UMMN - Unidentified Male






Artistic rendering of the victim

Date of Discovery: August 17, 2003
Location of Discovery: Isanti County, Minnesota
Estimated Date of Death: 2000-2003
State of Remains: Skeletal Remains
Cause of Death: Not Available

Physical Description

Estimated Age: 20-28 yrs old
Race: White
Gender: Male
Height: 5'9"
Weight: Cannot Estimate
Hair Color: Unknown
Eye Color: Unknown
Distinguishing Marks/Features: Ante-mortem healed fracture of the left 10th rib

Identifiers
Dentals
: Available
Fingerprints: Not Available
DNA: Available

Clothing & Personal Items
Clothing: None
Jewelry: A watch and a portion of a red and yellow blanket-like material located at scene with remains.
Additional Personal Items: None

Circumstances of Discovery
The victim was located near Highway 47 and County Road 5, on private property on August 17, 2003, when an excavator discovered a skull in a load of earth. Investigators discovered human remains at the original burial site and the site where the earth was being dumped.

The body, which was buried about three feet deep, could have been on the site since the 1970's. Investigators are treating the case as a homicide though they have no evidence of the manner of death. The depth of the grave, the location near a main highway leading out of the cities, is suspicious. Investigators have reviewed available missing person records and interviewed area residents with no success. The only other clue is a man's watch found near the remains.

The structure of the face and the dental reconstruction are very precise. Other facial details, such as the size of the ears and nose, and hair and eye color, are not known and reflect the best guess of the artist.

Investigating Agency(s)
Agency Name: Midwest Medical Examiner's Office
Agency Contact Person: Quinn Strobl
Agency Phone Number: 763-324-4400
Agency E-Mail: Quinn.strobl@co.anoka.mn.us
Agency Case Number: IC03-16

NCIC Case Number: N/A
NamUs Case Number: 8832

Information Source(s)
NamUs
Home Town Source
Star News

Admin Notes
Added: Prior to 2011; Last Updated: 11/01/2017

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Location Found
GPS coordinates
Address 1 28914 Hwy 47
Address 2
City Isanti
State Minnesota
Zip code 55040
County Isanti



28914 State Hwy 47, Isanti, MN 55040

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http://s10.zetaboards.com/usedtobedoe/topic/1001167/1/

http://www.isanticountynews.com/2003/august/19remains.html

Isanti County landowner finds human remains along his property

Breaking News Posted: 8/19/03

The Isanti County Sheriff's Office is studying human skeletal remains found Sunday by a landowner in Isanti County.

The remains were found while a landowner dug along his property near Highway 47 and County Road 5 near Isanti.

County sheriff's authorities believe the remains are those of an adult. The state Bureau of Criminal Apprehension's mobile crime lab was dispatched to the scene to reconstruct the remains and determine the age, gender, time of death and possible cause of death.

Anyone having information connected with the case should contact the Isanti County Sheriff's Office at 763-689-2141.

©Isanti County News

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http://www.isanticountynews.com/2005/Octob...identified.html

Posted: 10/26/05

Can you help identify this man?

The Isanti County Sheriffs Office, the Bureau of Criminal Apprehension, and the Isanti County Coroners Office are investigating the discovery of skeletal human remains.

On August 17, 2003, unidentified skeletal remains were located in Isanti County near Highway 47 and County Road 5. The remains were discovered during an excavation project The remains were found approximately three foot below the surface of the ground. A man’s watch was found near the remains.

The Anoka County Medical Examiner’s Office, working with forensic anthropologists and forensic odontologists believe the remains are those of a caucasian male, 20-28 years old, approximately 5'10" tall. The remains could have been buried from three to 28 years.

Dental records and a DNA profile are available.

The facial reconstruction is based on statistics, but also include some unknown characteristics such as the shape of the nose, ears, lips, and the color and length of hair. The reconstruction is a likeness and not a photograph.

Anyone identifying the above individual or any individuals or agencies with missing persons that could match these remains are encouraged to call the Isanti County Sheriffs Office at 763-689-2141. Dental records or DNA data will be needed for a positive identification.

©️Isanti County News

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http://www.isanticountynews.com/2003/august/21remains.html

Human remains discovered during Aug. 17 excavation

Posted Online: 8/21/03

The skeletal remains of an unidentified adult were discovered Sunday, Aug. 17 by a rural Isanti land owner excavating dirt on his property along Hwy. 47, south of Co. Rd. 5.

According to Isanti County Sheriff Mike Ammend, the remains have been turned over to Forensic Pathologist Dr. Janice Amatuzio of Midwest Pathology for further examination.

The Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension (BCA) was called in shortly after notification of the find was made to the Isanti County Sheriff’s Department. The BCA mobile crime lab responded to the scene a short time later and began investigation and reconstruction of the remains to determine the time of death, sex, age, physical size of the individual, and cause of death.

After completion of that study, dental records of persons reported as missing will be compared.

There was no clothing near the remains which appears to have lain there for some time.

Anyone with any information is asked to call Sheriff’s Investigator Chris Janssen at 763-689-2141.

©️Isanti County News

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http://www.isanticountynews.com/2003/august/27.html

Updated information on skeletal remains found in Isanti Co.

Posted Online: 8/27/03

After the first series of tests were completed by the BCA, Isanti Co. Sheriff Mike Ammend was able to release some approximate information about the skeletal remains found during an Aug. 17 excavation project near Co. Rd. 5 and Hwy. 47.

What is known as of Aug. 21 is that the remains belong to a Caucasian male, aged 25-35 years-old, with an approximate height of 5'9"-5'11". Sheriff Ammend said the time of death has not yet been determined.

©️Isanti County News

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http://www.dps.state.mn.us/comm/press/newP....asp?PR_Num=248

NEWS RELEASE
Kevin W. Smith, Director of Communications

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
May 25, 2004
CONTACT:
Kevin Smith, 651-296-8383

Facial reconstruction aids Isanti County Investigation

BCA Artist’s Rendering May Hold Key to Solving Mystery of Unidentified Man

ST. PAUL —Isanti County Sheriff's Office and Bureau of Criminal Apprehension (BCA) investigators hope a forensic facial reconstruction will jog someone's memory and help them identify the remains of a man found during the excavation of a private property on Aug. 17, 2003.

Isanti County officials are investigating the discovery, near state highway 47 and county road 5, as a homicide, but they've run out of clues as to who the man was.

According to an examination by the Anoka County Medical Examiner's Office, forensic anthropologists and forensic odontologists, the individual was a white man, between 20 and 28 years old and approximately 5 feet 10 inches tall. The remains could have been buried on the site between three and 28 years, based on the depth and level of deterioration.

Investigators have reviewed available missing person records and interviewed area residents with no success. The only other clue is a man's watch found near the remains. DNA and dental profiles are available from the remains, as well, though investigators have not been able to find a match.

The rendering, being released publicly today, includes very specific details of the man's face, including the bone structure and unusual teeth pattern.

"The structure of the face and the dental reconstruction are very precise," said BCA Special Agent Jon Hermann, who is assisting Isanti County with the investigation. "We're hoping that will help jog people's memory and solve this mystery."

Other facial details, such as the size of the ears and nose, and hair and eye color, are not known and reflect the best guess of the artist. In 1991, a similar artist's rendering helped BCA and Isanti County Sheriff's Office investigators identify the remains of a woman found near Cambridge.

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http://www.hometownsource.com/capitol/2004.../25missing.html

Posted: 5/25/04

Authorities hopeful that forensic facial reconstruction will help solve Isanti County missing person mystery

by T.W. Budig
ECM capitol reporter

Remember the smile.

That's what local and state law enforcement officials hope a forensic facial reconstruction of skeleton remains found in Isanti County last August might do -- jar loose a memory of a man's distinctive smile.

"We're very hopeful," said Isanti County Sheriff's Office investigator Chris Janssen during a press conference at the State Bureau of Criminal Apprehension in St. Paul on Tuesday (May 25).

The reconstruction is the only angle investigators have left, he said.

According to forensic experts, the remains unearthed near Highway 47 and County Road 5 is that of a white man, between 20 and 28-years old, about 5 feet, 10 inches tall.

The body, which was buried about three feet deep, could have been on the site between three and 28 years.

Investigators are treating the case as a homicide though they have no evidence of the manner of death.

The depth of the grave, the location near a main highway leading out of the cities, is suspicious.

A check of missing person records and interviews with area residents has resulted in no clues, according to law enforcement officials.

A man's watch was found near the burial site. Also a belt was found.

When the skeletal remains of Marilyn Moore, a 41-year-old woman from Shell Lake, WI., were found near the Chisago-Isanti County landfill on Co. Rd. 19 in September 1990, they went unidentified for over a year until reconstructed by a BCA specialist.

That likeness was then published in many area newspapers.

A Cambridge woman saw a poster of a missing woman when she was in Duluth in 1991 and provided the link between that person and the unidentified remains.

Moore, who had lived in an abusive relationship for many years, is believed to have died from natural causes. How she came to be found in Isanti County remains a mystery.Facial reconstructions have met with some success in the past.

Reconstructions are likenesses. They do not necessarily have photographic exactness.

Experts use anatomical statistics -- the length of nose is determined my measuring a bone at the base of the nose, the width of the mouth by measuring the six front teeth.

Of nine facial reconstructions done since 1989 by the Bureau, four resulted in identifications.

"When I see it I get the sense it was somebody, but we just don't know," said Janssen, gazing at the artist's rendering of what the unidentified man might have looked like the day he went missing.

The man's remains were discovered on private property last Aug. 17 when an excavator discovered a skull in a load of earth.

Investigators discovered human remains at the original burial site and the site where the earth was being dumped.

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Please contact Investigator Chris Janssen with any information at:
(763) 691-2415 or (763) 689-2141
or email: chris.janssen@sheriff.co.isanti.mn.us

On August 18, 2003 a rural Isanti County landowner discovered the human skeletal remains of an unknown individual. The landowner uncovered the remains when he was doing some excavating work on his property in the area of Highway 47 and Isanti County road 5.

The Sheriff's Office was notified and responded to the scene. The Bureau of Criminal Apprehension was requested to assist our office with this investigation. The BCA's mobile crime lab responded to the location and began their investigation and reconstruction of the remains to determine the approximate time of death as well as the victim's sex, age, physical size and possible cause of death. After this phase of the investigation is complete, dental records of reported missing persons will be compared with that of the remains we recovered.

The only thing we know for certain at this time is that the victim is an adult. Please contact us if you have any information.
http://www.isantisheriff.com/news.html


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https://www.facebook.com/MNBCA/photos/a.381039288700.160082.161470878700/10151115587448701/

Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension

August 17, 2012 ·
The BCA and the Isanti County Sheriff’s Office are looking for tips in an unidentified John Doe case. Skeletal remains were found buried in Isanti County near Highway 47 and County Road 5 on August 17, 2003. The body is believed to be that of a white male, age 20 – 28 years old and approximately 5’10” tall. The remains were buried at least three years prior to the discovery in 2003. Anyone with information on this or other Minnesota cold cases is urged to contact the BCA tip line: 1-877-996-6222 or BCA.Coldcase@state.mn.us

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Isanti John Doe has been identified as 22 Year-Old Donald Rindahl of New Brighton, MN.


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https://www.twincities.com/2022/01/12/remains-found-in-2003-belong-to-new-brighton-man-missing-since-1970/

Remains found in 2003 belong to New Brighton man missing since 1970

Fifty-one years ago, Donald Rindahl told his family he was leaving New Brighton and moving to California.

They never heard from him again.

Rindahl’s remains were discovered in August 2003 about 3 feet underground by a man doing a landscaping project on his property about six miles east of Isanti, Minn. Officials at the time were able to determine that the remains were that of a white man in his 20s who had been buried there for anywhere from three to 28 years.

But no one knew who he was until just a few weeks ago.

On Wednesday, Isanti County Chief Deputy Lisa Lovering said her agency had partnered with Othram Inc., a Texas-based company that specializes in forensic genealogy, to determine Rindahl’s identity. DNA taken from his remains was used to construct a family tree, which led to the genetic confirmation of his identity, she said.

Based on the family tree, Lovering said she was able to locate two of Rindahl’s siblings. The siblings — a brother and a sister — said Rindahl had been missing since 1970; they also submitted DNA samples that confirmed they had a full biological sibling relationship with the remains found in 2003, Lovering said.

“There is a lot of disbelief, but there is a lot of peace because we know that he’s being brought to his family,” Lovering said. “It’s not complete closure for them because there are still a lot of unanswered questions that we have, but at least they know that they can have him back home, and there’s some comfort with that.”

Sadly, she said, Rindahl’s parents died without knowing what happened to their son.

“They held out hope that maybe he was going to show up one day,” she said. “He never did.”

QUESTIONS UNANSWERED

Rindahl was 22 and living with a roommate in New Brighton at the time of his disappearance. His siblings told police that the FBI had been looking for their brother prior to his disappearance “due to some involvement with drugs,” Lovering said. The FBI case records have not been located.

Rindahl is believed to be the victim of a homicide, but his death is currently classified as undetermined, she said.

Missing-persons reports weren’t usually filed on adults in the 1970s and 1980s, Lovering said. “People didn’t report adults as missing persons unless there was something really suspicious going on.”

In Rindahl’s case, it wasn’t out of character for him to leave for stretches of time and not be in touch with family, Lovering said. “It wasn’t like they had cellphones or pagers to stay in contact,” she said. “They didn’t even consider him a missing person for quite a while and then a report was never filed on him.”

There was a lot of speculation and rumors flying around at the time of his disappearance, “but nothing was ever substantiated,” she said. “They were told he went to California. We don’t know if he even went to California.”

Rindahl’s brother told police that he traveled to California himself at one point to try to locate his brother, but was unsuccessful. “I don’t even know how you even start that process,” she said. “Where do you go? (Donald) gave no information as to where he was going.”

When the remains were found in August 2003, investigators with the Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension obtained DNA evidence, as well as dental records, which were entered into missing-persons databases, Lovering said. A facial reconstruction also was done.

Over the years, investigators submitted DNA samples from people looking for a family member, but there were no matches, she said.

Anyone with information about the death of Donald Rindahl is asked to contact the Isanti County Sheriff’s Office at 763-689-2141 or CrimeStoppers of Minnesota at 1-800-222-8477.