12/01/2023 UPDATE: Subject Identified, OCME Appreciates Help from Public
SAN FRANCISCO—The Office of the Chief Medical Examiner (OCME) is asking for the public’s help to identify a man who died on November 11, 2023.
The decedent is a white male, approximately 25 years of age, with red hair, green eyes, and a full beard. He was found wearing multiple layers of clothing. The San Francisco Police Department sketch artist has rendered a drawing of the decedent.
On November 11, the San Francisco Fire Department (SFFD) responded to a report of a man lying prone on the roof of a parking garage next to 355 Buckingham Way, a 9-story apartment building. SFFD declared the man deceased on the scene. The cause and manner of death are pending.
The OCME uses extensive investigatory methods to identify decedents with no means of identification, such as a driver’s license or state ID, on their person. In an overwhelming majority of cases, the OCME is able to make a positive identification of the subject within 24 hours.
In this rare case, investigatory methods--including fingerprint check, interviewing nearby residents, notifying the California Department of Justice’s Missing and Unidentified Persons Unit, and listing the decedent’s information on the National Missing Persons Database (NamUs)—have been unable to identify the decedent.
Anyone with information about the identity of the decedent should contact the OCME Investigative Division at 415-641-2220 or email OCME.INV@SFGOV.ORG or OCME@SFGOV.ORG. Please reference case Number 2023-1607.
About the Office of the Chief Medical Examiner
The San Francisco Office of the Chief Medical Examiner (OCME) is responsible for the investigation and certification of any sudden, unexpected, and violent deaths of legal or public health interest. The OCME also compiles data into reports, such as the monthly Accidental Overdose Reports and the Homeless Death Count, to regularly inform public health experts and policy makers. The OCME holds full accreditation status with the National Association of Medical Examiners, the highest form of accreditation a medical examiner office can achieve.