Jawbone found on shore 33 years ago belonged to man lost at sea, California cops say

As the commercial fishing boat “Midnight Sun” tried to make its way into a California bay during a storm in 1987, it capsized.

The skipper survived the Humboldt Bay wreck , but three others in the crew were killed, the Humboldt County Sheriff’s Office said in a July 2 news release.

While one crew member’s body was recovered, two more members went missing, deputies said.

Now, with the help of DNA technology, remains found in 1991 have been identified as one of the missing crew members, the sheriff’s office said.

A little more than three years after the December 1987 wreck, a human jawbone was found at Houda Point near Trinidad, California, deputies said.

Investigators took a DNA sample from the mandible, and the case was entered into the California Missing Person DNA Database and National Unidentified Person DNA index.

The DNA profile was also entered into the Combined Index System , a national DNA database, according to deputies.

However, no matches were ever found in any of the databases.

In December 2022, deputies partnered with Othram Inc., a forensic genetic genealogy company, to see if its scientists could help identify a “backlog of unidentified recovered human remains.”

Genetic genealogy uses DNA testing coupled with “traditional genealogical methods” to create “family history profiles,” according to the Library of Congress. With genealogical DNA testing, researchers can determine if and how people are biologically related.

Using DNA extracted from the jawbone, Othram said its scientists created a “ comprehensive DNA profile ” for the unknown man, according to a news release from the company.

Othram said its team then used the profile in genetic genealogy research, which was used to provide new leads to deputies.

Deputies said Othram authored a report, wherein the remains were possibly identified as those of Milton Leon Pelligrini Jr.

Paul said “his brother, Milton, was lost at sea,” according to deputies.

When Paul’s DNA sample was compared to that from the jawbone, it was confirmed to be related, deputies said.

Trinidad is about a 300-mile drive northwest of Sacramento.

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