Unsolved Murder of Santo Joseph DiStefano

On July 22, 1947, the body of 34-year-old Santo DiStefano was found in a sewer catch basin along Green Pond Rd. in Rockaway Township, New Jersey. Santo was last seen alive at 12 a.m. on March 22, 1947, at Ernie and Buff's Tavern on 21st st. in Patterson and likely died around that time.

Joseph had been shot around 5 times in the back of the neck killing him. He was not killed at the scene. Multiple people had to of been involved in his death or at least the disposal of his body. The grate that covered where he was could only be lifted by no less than 3 people. 

SOURCES:

Morris County New Jersey

The Morning Call July 23, 1947

The Daily Journal July 24, 1947

UNIDENTIFIED: September 14, 1947 Cassian, Wisconsin Jane Doe

 On September 14, 1947, a woman's body was found in a shallow grave in a rural area near an old grass-covered roadway in Cassian, Wisconsin. It was around 3.5 miles north of the intersection of USH 51 and USH 8. The victim was strangled to death and was found lying face down. It's not stated how long they believed she was dead.

Jane Doe was an adult female. She was 5'2" and 170lbs. She had brown greying hair. 2 distinct lines running from the forehead down to the nose, very small feet and ankles, and a broad nose. She was wearing rayon or silk pants, an undershirt and slip, and a large corset. She had a gold-colored ring on her left hand.

SOURCES:

NamUs

News-Record October 15, 1947

The Journal Times December 18, 1947

MISSING: Dorothy Louise Wright-Weiler

 On June 16, 1947, 22-year-old Dorothy Wright-Weiler was walking with her mother in Lewiston, Idaho. She would break away from her mother near a Cafe and told her she was going to jump in the river. This was the last time she was seen.

4 months before Dorothy and her ex-husband divorced. She had custody of the children and was living with her grandmother at the time. She had pawned her wedding ring and had a small amount of money in her pocket. 

Dorothy is a white female and was 22-years-old at the time. She was 5'1" to 5'6" and was around 120 lbs. She was wearing Levis, a red checked jacket, white sports shirt, bobby socks, and white mocassins. 

SOURCES:

NamUs

Find a Grave

Idaho Missing Persons Clearinghouse

The Unaccounted For

MISSING: Francis "Frank" Law Travis

On December 5, 1947, 48-year-old Francis "Frank" Travis left for work from his home in Sanford, Maine. It's unknown what had happened to him, but his vehicle would be found abandoned in Ogunquit. 

Frank is a white male and was 48-years-old at the time. He was 5'8" and 156 lbs. He had strawberry blonde hair and grey eyes. His hair was thinning on the top. He has a linear scar on the right side of his abdomen.

He was wearing a brown suit, brown overcoat, brown hat, reading glasses and a gold plated wristwatch with a leather strap.

SOURCES:

NamUs

MISSING: Harvey "Gene" Eugene Whitacrel.

In 1947 20-year-old Harvey Eugene Whitacre also known as Gene was a Corporal in the U.S. Army stationed at Sandia Base. He was also treasurer of his bowling league and was considered an above-average bowler.  

On the night of June 30, 1947, he was last seen leaving the bowling alley in, Albuquerque, New Mexico. He was carrying around $400 for his bowling league. He did not show up for roll call at the base the next day. It caused people to worry about him. 

In a side street near the bowling alley, there was a sign of an attack, but some believe it was staged. At the scene were his broken glasses, necktie, army cap, and a bloodstained shirt with slashes in the back, as if someone had been stabbed. 

The FBI and the Defense Department looked into the case s if Gene was AWOL. They spent a lot of time asking friends and family about Gene's whereabouts. They had even wiretapped phones and intercepted mail to try to find Gene. They claimed that his work wasn't National Security, but they were trying really hard to find him for someone who wasn't.

Gene was a white male who was described as a kind of Asian looking in some reports. He was 5'9 and around 145 lbs. He had brown hair cut in a military-style and brown eyes. He also has bad eyesight and wears very strong subscription glasses.

SOURCES:

NamUs

Doe Network

Missing Veterans

Fictional Murders: S.S. Ourang Medan

In either June of 1947 or Feb of 1948, a distress signal was coming from a ship. It seemed that the person sending out the S.O.S. was terrified and stated that people were dying among the S.S. Ourang Medan and that "possibly the whole crew dead." What followed was indecipherable morse code or was it the madness taking over the panicked messager? Eventually, silence followed.

The ship was noticed by the American ship called the Silver Star believed the ship was in the Straits of Malacca. Noting the urgency in the message they sought out the ship and found it. When getting on the ship they noticed that there was no sign of life aboard.

Everyone they saw was laying down with their mouths and eyes wide open and their hands were reaching out as if trying to grasp something or protecting themselves. There didn't seem to be any wounds on any of the people. The ship's dog was found to be dead in the same horrifying state. The crew members under the deck were also found in the same horrifying state. They found the man who sen out the S.O.S. with his finger on the telegraph.

It was also noted that the ship was cold even though it was a scorching 110 degrees outside. After finding no survivors they quickly got off. They planned to pull the ship to shore, but that wasn't meant to be. Thick smoke began to rise out of the ship and the Silver Star had hardly enough time to cut the line away from the S.S. Ourang Medan before it exploded and sunk.

What was it that killed all those men on the ship and cause the ship to explode?

It's more simple than it seems. The ship most likely never existed in the first place. There were no records of the ship existing The ship Silver Star was named that, but that wasn't the name of it at the time. At the time the name was Santa Juana and its name changed later when it was bought by Grace Line Shipping Company.

If it did exist the ship may have come from the Dutch East Indies. In Indonesian, Ourang means ‘man’ and Medan is the largest city on the island of Sumatra making some think that the ship may have come from there. The ship's name literally means "Man of Medan". Some theorize that the ship itself may have been expunged from records because they were smuggling things for the war. It could be possible that the "smoke" that the rescuers were seeing was a nerve gas that was being transported to Japan.

It was theorized that several countries were involved with the cover-up such as Singapore, Japan, Netherlands, Germany, China, and the United States. As at the time the use of Lethal Gas and Chemicals was baned.

It's also theorized that even though they weren't found in records possibly they did exist. That a malfunctioning boiler caused everyone to die from carbon Monoxide Poisoning.

A third theory is that it was pirates that killed the crew and left them the way they did. Which how would the pirates kill the crew without any physical injuries though.

SOURCES:
Beyond Science T.V.
Mysterious Universe
Skittish Library
Historic Mysteries

UNIDENTIFIED:1947 Calico California Jane Doe

The skull was claimed to have been found in Calico, California sometime in 1947. The person who found it kept it and after their death, the skull was turned over to Bureau of Land Management by a friend. Skull belongs to a young woman between 15 and 25-years-old.

SOURCES:
NamUs