Answer

Office of the regional coroner

Date and hour report generated:

July 18, 2014; 2:18 A.M. by

Mnig Fogal

Summary report of the external briefing

Name: John Michael Phillips                                                                           Case #: 1227-2014

Date of birth: Unknown                                                                                 Age: Unknown

Body discovered by: Duane NMN Johnson and Anthony Alonzo Capri                                         

Investigative agency: Regional Sheriff’s Department

External examination

The deceased was presented to the medical examiner’s office at 1.07 A.M on July 18, 2014. Self-reported friends of the deceased discovered the body on the material night, and the body was presented to the medical examiner’s office covered in a white body bag. The police crime scene information say the deceased was discovered with a needle in the arm as well as multiple contusions and lacerations to the face and scalp. This has made the case suspicious and the police are treating it as suspicious. The discovery happened at 64 Church Street, Virtual, MD that is situated adjacent to the Westview housing project. This area has attracted multiple police calls and police presence over the last year has increased in an attempt to contain crime. The Narcotics Task Force, also, has sought to contain the wave by carrying out a number of drug stings as well as other drug operations in the area over the past year. 

Information in police record state that there are two John Michael Philips in their records and positive identification has also been made complicated by the fact that both individuals going by that name have attracted multiple drug possession charges. In addition, neither of the self-reported friends of the victim knows his date of birth and police records indicate that one of the Phillips with a 1991 date of birth is presently incarcerated in the Virtual Jail. The second Philip in record has a date of birth recorded as 1992 and a booking photo is available to detectives, but the multiple lacerations to the deceased face make a positive identification challenging. This has led the police to request additional assistance from the family members to enable positive identification of the victim. Any available information, which would lead to positive identification of the body, is highly welcomed and the police is requesting for full cooperation with the concerned parties to resolve this seemingly mysterious case (Beers and Beers, n. d). Any individual with helpful information should contact the regional sheriff’s office or any other law enforcement establishment nearest to them. 

Despite the victim being discovered with a needle in his arm and in an area that is renowned for relatively high drug- related cases, the police are treating the death as suspicious. This is because initial investigative procedures revealed lacerations to the victim’s face, the contusions to his skull, as well as the fact that the skull is caved in at the back. This raises suspicion that the victim’s death could be unrelated to apparent drug use, and unnatural causes could have led to the death possibly through excessive trauma from blunt object (s). Yet, the area where the victim was discovered in known to be considerably rocky and it could be that the deceased simply hurt his head following an overdose. The lack of blood in the crime scene, however, raises additional questions that the investigating is determined to provide answers. The investigation of the events leading to victim’s death is exploring all the possibilities, and the police team assigned the case have promised to leave no stone unturned. Nothing is left to chance regarding positive identification and circumstances of the death of this victim.   

Information from the discovery scene implies that the victim is presented as he is presented to the medical examiner’s office. The body structure is that of a normally developed male, and the body is cold. He is clad blue jean short labeled Levi’s, size 34 and a white cotton t- shirt, size Large, and briefs labeled Calvin Klein that read medium size. He is also wearing sketchers athletic shoes, size 10, which are white in color and have blue stripes. The victim is wearing no socks, and he has a gold- colored Citizens watch, multiple fabric –yarn- type bracelets, a beaded necklace, as well as a silver colored ring on his right finger. At the time of discovery, the deceased had no wallet or any other type of document relevant to help in the identification process. The victim was carrying $117 in cash made up of five (5) $20 bills, one (1) $10 bill, and seven (7) $1 bills. In addition, the deceased had $1.45 in change made up of four (4) quarters, three (3) dimes, as well as three (3) nickels. Save for the clothing, all the described property was removed by the death investigator sent to the crime scene by the medical examiner’s office and made available to the police.  

The family is highly encouraged to contribute to this case and, hopefully, serve the investigating team with crucial information that could lead to positive identification and proper closer.