For more than four decades, the identity of a young man found deceased in Ridley Township, Pennsylvania, remained a mystery. On December 13, 1978, the body of 18-year-old Kevin Alvin Jude Carroll, a male, was discovered in Crum Creek. He had been shot multiple times, and his death was ruled a homicide. For 44 years, he was known only as 'John Doe,' a nameless victim in a cold case.
Kevin, who was from Salem, Oregon, had been discharged from the U.S.
Air Force at McGuire Air Force Base in New Jersey just six days before his body was found. He had sent his belongings ahead to his family in Oregon and was expected to arrive home for the holidays, but he never made it. His family in Oregon had long considered him missing and he was legally declared dead in 2003.
The breakthrough in the case came in December 2021 when a volunteer with the Veteran Doe Network, an organization that seeks to identify missing service members, came across a possible match. This led to a renewed investigation by the Ridley Township Police Department and the Delaware County District Attorney's Office. Through a multi-agency effort that utilized fingerprints and a crime scene photograph, the 'John Doe' was positively identified as Kevin Alvin Jude Carroll on March 22, 2022.
Despite the identification, the homicide of Kevin Alvin Jude Carroll remains an open and unsolved case. Law enforcement officials have not publicly identified any suspects or made any arrests in connection with his death. The investigation is ongoing, and authorities continue to appeal to the public for any information that may lead to the person or persons responsible for his death.
