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The original was posted on /r/unresolvedmysteries by /u/another_meme_account on 2024-01-10 13:01:36+00:00.
Case summary: In early July 1999, an unidentified body of a 16-18 year old man was found in lake Ukiel in Olsztyn, Poland, a popular tourist spot in the summer. The decedent was found drowned by the side of the lake known for its unguarded beaches. Despite retaining a recognizable face and having a distinct facial structure, to this day, he remains unidentified, and the public coverage regarding his discovery is scarce. Apart from the above information, only a low-quality post-mortem photo and a description of his appearance are available without any further details.
I had found what seemed to be a matching missing person's case that could potentially be the identity behind that particular Doe, considering the short distance between Olsztyn and his last seen location of Elbląg (2 hours), the closely matching appearance and height, with the only caveat being the fact that the missing Maciej Jóźwiak was reported as missing in October 1999. Initially however, I thought that it could be blamed on a delay between his disappearance and date of missing report submission.I had reached out to the Itaka foundation who is responsible for his case about the potential match, and unfortunately it is not him. Turns out the missing date provided in Maciej's case is in fact the date of last contact, therefore it's not possible that the Doe found in Olsztyn is him.
It still leaves me curious about who it might have been, since it just seems so unlikely nobody knew or recognized that young man. I might try looking around international missing person's databases as well, since once again it was an area very well known with tourists, especially ones from Germany and ex-Soviet states (notably the Russian Kaliningrad Oblast, located around 2.5 hours away from Olsztyn). If anyone has any potential tips or other ideas where to look further, such as those missing person's databases, please reach out. Anything could help, and I would love to see him get his name back. I even tried to give my hand at my very first facial reconstruction, since it just seems impossible that no one would remember him as a guy they played on the neighborhood with, or their classmate, their distant friend, their cousin. I know it's not very good, but the only two pictures of him available are of such a low quality it would be a miracle to identify him based off of those pictures alone. I'm thinking of making a digital "Who Are We?"-type poster in Polish, English, and maybe other languages if I'm able to translate properly, with his reconstruction to share around, because in such a small city I'm certain someone would eventually recognize him.
Translation of the appearance description released by Olsztyn Police:
The Provincial Police Headquarters in Olsztyn conducts identification and search activities in relation to an unidentified male corpse discovered in Lake Krzywe [translation note: another name for Lake Ukiel] in the Likusy district in Olsztyn, on July 10, 1999. The cause of death was determined to be drowning on the days between July 8, 1999. and 10/07/99. Description: age approximately 16-18 years old; height 175 cm; medium build; dark blonde, short, straight hair; round, full face; pale complexion; high forehead; eyes set wide apart, convex; nose small, straight, concave; medium-sized, protruding ears; medium mouth; full dentition; protruding chin; short neck; long arms; fingers long, slim; long, skinny legs; long toes. Distinguishing marks: none.
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My personal amateur reconstruction based on Olsztyn John Doe's morgue photograph (first time doing any kind of reconstruction like this)
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Original post - Olsztyn John Doe's DoeNetwork page - Snapshot of the original police announcement of his body's discovery in Polish (site is currently defunct)
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POSTMORTEM WARNING original morgue photo of the decedent