The Death of Claremont John Doe, March 1981

On Monday, March 23, 1981, a homeowner was digging a post hole on his property at 5229 Palmer Canyon Rd in Claremont, LA County, CA when he discovered partial skeletal remains with some soft tissue remaining. According to NamUs, the remains consisted of a skull and mandible.  

I could not find any newspaper articles mentioning the discovery, and overall there is very little information available in this case. Due to the condition of the remains, the decedent's race/ethnicity, eye color, hair color, height, and weight could not be determined. Their sex was also undetermined until sometime between 2017 and 2020, based on information from NamUs posted to WebSleuths.

The skull and mandible are believed to have belonged to a man aged 18 to 34 years old. His year of death is estimated at 1971 to 1981. His cause of death, if determined, has not been released to the public. There were no clothing items or pieces of jewelry found with the decedent. 

John Doe's NamUs case, #UP4346, was created on Sept. 9, 2008 and last updated July 22, 2025. There are no exclusions listed on that page. According to information previously made available on NamUs that was posted to WebSleuths in 2017, John Doe's dental information and DNA are available for comparison.

Anyone who believes they may have information concerning John Doe is urged to contact Investigator Betsy Magdaleno of the LA County Medical Examiner's Office at (323) 343-0512 or IDUnit@me.lacounty.gov. The agency case number is 1981-03918. Any little piece of information, no matter how seemingly insignificant, is appreciated, and may be the key to recovering John Doe's identity.

Nearby Cases

Two years prior to the discovery of John Doe, the headless torso of a young man was found near San Antonio Creek Channel just east of Mt Baldy Rd in an area north of Upland, San Bernardino County, CA. This decedent is also unidentified, and is currently known only as Upland John Doe 1979. 

Distance as the crow flies between Claremont John Doe 1981 and Upland John Doe 1979 (1.09mi), as well as another nearby case, LA County Doe 1982 (1.33mi). Created by me using My Maps. Viewed through Google Earth.

Upland John Doe was aged between about 16 to 22 years old. His remains were found on May 23, 1979, and he is believed to have died about two weeks before discovery. Upland John Doe had been decapitated prior to discovery, and his head has never been found. The location where he was found is only a six minute drive from the location where Claremont John Doe 1981 was recovered.

On Thursday, August 6, 2026, I reached out to the San Bernardino County Sheriff's Coroner Division, which is in charge of Upland John Doe 1979's case, to submit these two sets of remains -- the headless torso (Upland JD 1979) and skull (Claremont JD 1981) -- as possibly belonging to the same individual. As of the following day, I am still waiting for a response.

Driving distance from the recovery location of Upland JD 1979's remains to Claremont JD 1981's remains. Pinpointed by me using My Maps. Viewed through Google Maps. 

Sources 

NamUs

LACME

WebSleuths

Unidentified wiki