Dutch detectives have reported 15 new leads in a 30-year-old murder case after releasing a podcast inspired by the popularity of true-crime documentaries. The body of an unidentified man, wrapped in an electric blanket, was found near a motorway in Naarden, east of Amsterdam, in August 1991. Despite an extensive investigation, neither the victim nor the killer has been identified.
The three-part podcast, produced by the Politie Nederland, details the original investigation and recent developments, including a facial reconstruction created with help from Dundee University. Martin de Wit, a former journalist and cold case spokesman, said the podcast has generated useful information. “At this moment we have had 15 leads from the podcast – very useful information – and my colleagues are working on it now,” he said.
Johan Baas, the detective who responded to the scene in 1991, participated in the podcast to aid the case. He recalled the challenges of identifying the corpse, as DNA testing was in its infancy and no national database existed. The man’s fingerprints did not match any records, and his clothes and the German-made blanket offered no clues. The only lead was a gold ring from mail-order company Otto, but tracing its buyer proved unsuccessful.
Baas described the frustration of the initial six-month investigation. “I had to search for the family of the person who was dead. He was an older man, maybe a father, and that was what weighed on me,” he said. Two years ago, new technology enabled a facial reconstruction, and the victim is believed to have been around 60 or 70 years old. The podcast has now opened new avenues for detectives to explore.
