(Trends Wide) — More than six decades after a boy was found dead in a box in Philadelphia, investigators have identified the boy with the help of DNA, police announced Tuesday.
In what became known as the “Boy in the Box” case, the boy was discovered wrapped in a blanket inside a cardboard box on February 25, 1957, in a wooded area of Northeast Philadelphia, according to the National Center for for Missing and Exploited Children.
The boy had several scars on his body and had recently had his hair cut and shaved, the center said. The boy, who is estimated to be between 4 and 6 years old, weighed just 13 kilograms and appeared to be malnourished, according to the center.
The grave of the unidentified boy, known to some as the ‘Boy in the Box’.
“Despite numerous attempts to identify the boy over the years, the minor’s identity remained a mystery. Through detective work and DNA analysis, police are finally able to identify the child,” the Philadelphia Police Department said in a news release Tuesday.
Police have not yet released the boy’s name.
The case is the oldest unsolved homicide in Philadelphia, according to police, who are still searching for the boy’s killer. There is a $20,000 reward for information leading to an arrest and conviction in the case.
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City authorities will hold a press conference on December 8 to discuss the new developments. Philadelphia Police Commissioner Danielle Outlaw, along with the city’s medical examiner and the head of the police department’s homicide unit, will be on hand to share information, the statement said.
