UPDATE, 3/24/08:
John Doe has been identified. He is Scott Andrew Shain, age 53. According to Seattle TV station KING 5, Shain was identified by his parents after they saw his photo on the FBI's website. Thanks to commenter "WOW" for the update and the link. Further updates may follow.
ORIGINAL ENTRY:
The balding, blue-eyed man is medium height, weighs about 170. His age is a mystery. He could be 40, he could be in his early 50s. In every photo he wears the same expression, and it's hard to dismiss the impression that he's smirking. He is holding onto a secret, something he'll never willingly tell another. He currently sits inside the SeaTac Detention Center in Seattle, Washington, facing a number of charges -- charges that include aggravated identity theft.
No one knows who he is. To that end, he's even tried to obliterate his own fingerprints.
The FBI started looking into John Doe more than 5 months ago. The Royal Canadian Mounted Police contacted the FBI, curious about Seattle resident Dwayne Spill. Spill had tried to get birth certificates from British Columbia and from Saskatchewan.
The Feds first talked to the man in late 2007. He called himself Robert Lowe, but the nameplate on his residence read "D. A. Spill."
The investigation revealed more names. Photographs from Washington State driver's licenses tied the names together. All the licenses bore photos of the same ageless, smirking man. In some he wore wigs, others he wore glasses. But his face was unmistakable. Beside that face were names like:
An investigator with the Social Security Administration's Office of Inspector General, Joseph Velling, spoke to the Seattle Times about Doe. The Feds may know who the man is now, but they aren't sure. "He is a little bit of a savant, to tell you the truth," said Velling. He continued, "It's hard to remember anything quite like this."
Doe was clever. In Massachusetts he was Bernard O'Daly (only one man with this name from Massachusetts shows up on the Social Security Death Index -- he died in April, 1979). When he moved west, he had that name legally changed to Blake Matthew Desmond.
Special Agent Velling told the Times that Doe has lived in Massachusetts, Washington, Oregon, Colorado, Wyoming and Idaho. Doe has a criminal record as well -- under some of his aliases.
His most recent arrest wasn't Doe's first encounter with Federal agents. Doe was interviewed 15 years ago by the Secret Service after he allegedly threatened Bill Clinton. They confiscated a homemade flamethrower from the man at the time.
Velling also indicated that Doe may have had some involvement in what he called a "sort of eBay or Craigslist for criminals."
Though Doe is facing charges of mail fraud and identity theft, investigators haven't found much evidence of the mystery man using his various identities to commit any other crimes. He may be hiding from something, he may simply be paranoid.
Doe hasn't helped anyone. He simply sits in jail, no doubt with the same mysterious half-smile on his face much of the time, waiting for his next court date.
Sources:
John Doe has been identified. He is Scott Andrew Shain, age 53. According to Seattle TV station KING 5, Shain was identified by his parents after they saw his photo on the FBI's website. Thanks to commenter "WOW" for the update and the link. Further updates may follow.
ORIGINAL ENTRY:
The balding, blue-eyed man is medium height, weighs about 170. His age is a mystery. He could be 40, he could be in his early 50s. In every photo he wears the same expression, and it's hard to dismiss the impression that he's smirking. He is holding onto a secret, something he'll never willingly tell another. He currently sits inside the SeaTac Detention Center in Seattle, Washington, facing a number of charges -- charges that include aggravated identity theft.
No one knows who he is. To that end, he's even tried to obliterate his own fingerprints.
The FBI started looking into John Doe more than 5 months ago. The Royal Canadian Mounted Police contacted the FBI, curious about Seattle resident Dwayne Spill. Spill had tried to get birth certificates from British Columbia and from Saskatchewan.
The Feds first talked to the man in late 2007. He called himself Robert Lowe, but the nameplate on his residence read "D. A. Spill."
The investigation revealed more names. Photographs from Washington State driver's licenses tied the names together. All the licenses bore photos of the same ageless, smirking man. In some he wore wigs, others he wore glasses. But his face was unmistakable. Beside that face were names like:
- William Gregg;
- a variation on Robert Lowe, spelling the last name "Loew";
- William Everett Gee;
- Blake Matthew Desmond;
- Bernard O'Daly;
An investigator with the Social Security Administration's Office of Inspector General, Joseph Velling, spoke to the Seattle Times about Doe. The Feds may know who the man is now, but they aren't sure. "He is a little bit of a savant, to tell you the truth," said Velling. He continued, "It's hard to remember anything quite like this."
Doe was clever. In Massachusetts he was Bernard O'Daly (only one man with this name from Massachusetts shows up on the Social Security Death Index -- he died in April, 1979). When he moved west, he had that name legally changed to Blake Matthew Desmond.
Special Agent Velling told the Times that Doe has lived in Massachusetts, Washington, Oregon, Colorado, Wyoming and Idaho. Doe has a criminal record as well -- under some of his aliases.
His most recent arrest wasn't Doe's first encounter with Federal agents. Doe was interviewed 15 years ago by the Secret Service after he allegedly threatened Bill Clinton. They confiscated a homemade flamethrower from the man at the time.
Velling also indicated that Doe may have had some involvement in what he called a "sort of eBay or Craigslist for criminals."
Though Doe is facing charges of mail fraud and identity theft, investigators haven't found much evidence of the mystery man using his various identities to commit any other crimes. He may be hiding from something, he may simply be paranoid.
Doe hasn't helped anyone. He simply sits in jail, no doubt with the same mysterious half-smile on his face much of the time, waiting for his next court date.
Sources:
- The Seattle Times
- KOMOTV.com: "Man with no name has federal agents baffled," 3/21/2008
