Coroner seeks public’s help to solve 20-year-old cold case

The B.C. coroner hopes to solve a 20-year-old mystery about the unidentified remains of a middle-aged white man who was found with extensive injuries near the Trans-Canada Highway in West Vancouver.

Dental records and DNA testing have not been able to tie the man, who may have been homeless, to any missing persons cases, said Laura Yazedjian of the B.C. Coroners Service.

A resident looking for firewood found the decomposing body near the 15th Street off-ramp in the spring of 1996. The coroner believes the man, who would have been between 50 and 65 years old, died in the late summer or early fall of 1995. There was no evidence of foul play. He was wearing a dark-blue padded jacket, a light-coloured shirt with red stripes, jeans and black Riddell-brand running shoes. His height is estimated at between 5-foot-5 and 5-foot-8.

Anyone with information should email the coroner at bccs.siu@gov.bc.ca.