John Michael McMINN^[1]

- 1976

• Name	John Michael McMINN  [2, 3]
  Gender	Male
  HIST	Man gets new leads on 1976 mystery couple Robert Cottingham / The Item Man gets new leads on 1976 mystery couple John and Jane Doe’s grave markers are seen on Saturday in Bethel United Methodist Church’s cemetery. BY ROB COTTINGHAM rcottingham@theitem.com For 36 years now, law enforcement and much of the public at large have been fascinated by the mystery couple who were found dead near Interstate 95 here in Sumter County in August 1976. The initial investigation and all the subsequent research provided an endless list of details, including the victims' dental records, photos of their faces, and even the jewelry they were wearing at the time. Despite all the information uncovered and the long hours spent by so many in attempt to identify the couple, no one has been able to identify either of the two young people, both in their early 20s at the time of their killings. But Seneca resident Matt McDaniel says he thinks he can finally put names to their faces. "I've been researching this for quite a while," McDaniel said. "And I think I've found them." McDaniel is a graduate of Clemson's engineering program, an artist and used to own a book store. He also has an appetite for mystery. About three months ago, McDaniel began looking into the unknown couple and became determined to identify them. He began with a list of missing persons reports from 1975-76, looking into each and every case and eliminating the possibilities one by one. Using a websleuths.com, a web site used by amateur detectives to help solve cold cases, McDaniel documented nearly every bit of evidence, every connection he discovered. "It's taken a good number of man hours, I'll say," McDaniel said. His hard work led him to a couple from Oregon whose missing persons reports weren't available until 2008. Their names? Michael and Cordelia McMinn. McDaniel provided a plethora of details that build a strong case for his allegations that John and Jane Doe, killed so long ago, could very well be his Micheal and Cordelia McMinn. "They were both young -- late teens to early 20s" Since the initial report, the physical descriptions of the Doe couple were laden with details that make their deaths all the more tragic. They were young, athletic, slender, tanned and generally described as attractive. McDaniel said the physical descriptions of the Oregon couple are very much similar to Sumter's John and Jane Doe of 1976. Height, weight, build. They all seem to match. "...even the description of Jane Doe's eyes matches that of Cordelia (McMinn)," McDaniel said. Other, more specific bits of information, such as scars and moles, made the likenesses even more alarming. Composite images and photo comparisons between the McMinns and John and Jane Doe show so many features shared by the two couples. McDaniel posted the images on one of the websleuths.com threads about the case, and the resemblance is uncanny. "Looking at these photos ... I see the same people," McDaniel wrote below the photos. "Also, I believe you can see a mole on Cordelia's cheek." The photos, provided by Michael McMinn's brother, show the missing individual as having a thick mustache. The post-autopsy photos taken by the Sumter County coroner at the time feature a clean-shaven John Doe. In an attempt to compare the John Doe to the photo of McMinn, McDaniel turned to composite artist Carl Koppelman to digitally place a mustache and a pair of glasses onto the photo of John Doe. The two images were nearly identical. Several previous investigations have reached this point, but it's the other details of McDaniel's investigation that makes this case so particularly haunting. The Match Box From the moment authorities arrived at the scene in 1976, the number of questions seemed to only multiply with very few attainable answers. The scene contained elements similar to that of an execution. No form of identification was left on either body. No driver's licenses, no credit cards, no insurance cards. Nothing. The only item left behind on either body was a match box in John Doe's pocket. Printed on the face of the box was "Grant's Truck Stop." According to McDaniel, there are only four establishments in the U.S. that have that name. Investigating all four businesses, McDaniel decided that Grant's Truck Stop in York, Neb., was the most likely place John Doe acquired the match box, seeing as how his suspected match, Michael McMinn, would have likely traveled through Nebraska to get to South Carolina from Oregon. While digging through articles featured in past editions of The Item, McDaniel found an article in which a mechanic who worked at the truck stop said he remembered helping the couple with their car. Of the details mentioned by the mechanic, one was most chilling: the couple's vehicle had license plates from either Washington or Oregon. But why would a couple travel from the Northwest to the Southeast? It's more than a 2,800-mile trip from Sumter to where the couple might be from in Oregon. "Given the way the couple was killed, it was most likely for drugs," McDaniel said. "It was an execution-style murder, as if someone put a hit out on John and Jane Doe." John Doe's T-shirt Perhaps the most incendiary details that connect McDaniel's theory about drug trafficking come from John Doe's apparel. John Doe was found lying down in a red Coors Light T-shirt. That shirt was a memorabilia item from a 1975 racing event hosted by a Georgia-based racing company called IMSA GT racing. According to archived New York Times articles, that were originally printed sometime after the couple's deaths, several members of that Georgia racing company were arrested for trafficking as much as 200,000 pounds of marijuana from the mid-'70s to the mid-'80s. The ring leader was alleged to be one of IMSA's stars, who was later imprisoned for shooting a federal witness five times, the articles read. According to McDaniel, some reports said the subject opened fire when the witness refused to get into the trunk of his car. McDaniel said that details from a police report of the crime scene indicated that it was quite possible that the Doe couple exited the rear of a vehicle, possibly the back seat or the trunk, prior to their murders. Supposedly, the gun used in the incident was a .357 Magnum, which was also the alleged weapon used in the killings of John and Jane Doe. Though the weapon from the 1976 case was eventually recovered years later, identified through ballistic studies, the gun actually turned out to be a .38 Special. A .357-caliber gun can fire .38-caliber bullets, but not vice-versa. An interesting detail is that John and Jane Doe each had a gunshot wound beneath their chins, called an "insurance" round. After serving time for the marijuana and attempted murder charges, IMSA member again found himself in the cross hairs of the law as officials sought him for questioning in the disappearance of Colleen Wood. Perhaps the shirt was a gift or simply purchased by John Doe at an event, but if the T-shirt does connect Doe to the IMSA, then it isn't farfetched to say Doe could have been one of many people employed to transport marijuana, as McDaniel hypothesized. Given the IMSA's member's apparent disposition to violence and kidnapping, John and Jane Doe's killings could have very well been an ordered hit. Full circle As if this all wasn't eerie enough, there is a potential for a penultimate creepy fact. John and Jane Doe are buried in Oswego, South Carolina. The McMinns ... are from Oswego Lake, Oregon. The Next Steps While excitement is high among some of those involved in this investigation, some remain skeptical after decades of dead-end leads and disappointing results. Former coroner of Sumter County Verna Moore spent many hours following those leads, only to be disappointed in the end. "It's been 36 years," she said. "Someone knows who they are, and I wish they'd come forward." Moore said she ran numerous tests over the years as the coroner in hopes of identifying the couple, including DNA samples. She said she can't believe John and Jane Doe haven't been identified yet. "I listened to (McDaniel), and he did a lot of research and had a lot of evidence," Moore said. "Until I see DNA matches, I can't say it's them." Naturally, that's the direction McDaniel is going. McDaniel had also been in contact with Capt. Allen Dailey of the Sumter County Sheriff's Office. Dailey hopes just as much as the others involved that the case is finally coming to a close. "We've been working with Mr. McDaniel to help with the identification of this couple as much as we can," Dailey said. "They're not forgotten." Dailey also echoed the compassionate sentiments of Verna Moore. "Those are somebody's children," Dailey said. "And they're missing them." Using DNA test results from the Doe couple and samples from the McMinns' family members, McDaniel is awaiting the results of a DNA comparison test from North Texas University. "The family is being sent DNA kits," McDaniel said in an email. "The results should be in within a couple months." If the results come back negative, then the investigative process will start over, as it has many times before. But if the McMinn couple is a match for John and Jane Doe, then investigators will get a happy ending 36 years in the making. A case that has fascinated so many and added so much color to Sumter urban folklore will be solved. Once again, there is hope. Once again, we wait. Posted in Local news, News on Sunday, August 12, 2012 Proposed Change: Michael MCMINN (I280980) Tree: Singleton and Related Families Link: http://singletonfamily.org//getperson.php?personID=I280980&tree=1 Description: My brother. His full name is John Michael McMinn. Peter McMinn petemcminn@gmail.com Proposed Change: John Michael McMINN (I280980) Tree: Singleton and Related Families Link: http://singletonfamily.org//getperson.php?personID=I280980&tree=1 Description: This report amounts to revisionism for the sake of solving the "urban folklore" case of Sumter, South Carolina. Observers should note that while the McMinn family has submitted DNA samples (National DNA Database since 2012), DNA evidence from the Sumter case has yet to be matched with it. While on one level, the facial overlay of Michael and Cordelia to John and Jane Doe is artful and persuasive, it is unfortunately the product of confirmation bias. A great number of physical characteristics between the two couples do not match, regardless of postmortem changes. Furthermore, the original coroner's report provided me by McDaniel makes no mention of very specific and identifying physical factors that both Michael and Cordelia would have exhibited even after post mortem changes. It is my sincere desire that the truth be known in both of these cases. However, to this end, drawing conclusions based upon speculation and hopeful reckoning serves no useful purpose. I recommend a) analysis of DNA evidence from the Sumter case for comparison to that available for John Michael and Cordelia McMinn, b) acquiring more physical data clearly proving either a positive or negative match. I invite anyone interested in further input by me to reach me at the given email address. Peter McMinn petemcminn@gmail.com  [1, 2, 3]
  HIST	Man gets new leads on 1976 mystery couple Robert Cottingham / The Item Man gets new leads on 1976 mystery couple John and Jane Doe’s grave markers are seen on Saturday in Bethel United Methodist Church’s cemetery. BY ROB COTTINGHAM rcottingham@theitem.com For 36 years now, law enforcement and much of the public at large have been fascinated by the mystery couple who were found dead near Interstate 95 here in Sumter County in August 1976. The initial investigation and all the subsequent research provided an endless list of details, including the victims' dental records, photos of their faces, and even the jewelry they were wearing at the time. Despite all the information uncovered and the long hours spent by so many in attempt to identify the couple, no one has been able to identify either of the two young people, both in their early 20s at the time of their killings. But Seneca resident Matt McDaniel says he thinks he can finally put names to their faces. "I've been researching this for quite a while," McDaniel said. "And I think I've found them." McDaniel is a graduate of Clemson's engineering program, an artist and used to own a book store. He also has an appetite for mystery. About three months ago, McDaniel began looking into the unknown couple and became determined to identify them. He began with a list of missing persons reports from 1975-76, looking into each and every case and eliminating the possibilities one by one. Using a websleuths.com, a web site used by amateur detectives to help solve cold cases, McDaniel documented nearly every bit of evidence, every connection he discovered. "It's taken a good number of man hours, I'll say," McDaniel said. His hard work led him to a couple from Oregon whose missing persons reports weren't available until 2008. Their names? Michael and Cordelia McMinn. McDaniel provided a plethora of details that build a strong case for his allegations that John and Jane Doe, killed so long ago, could very well be his Micheal and Cordelia McMinn. "They were both young -- late teens to early 20s" Since the initial report, the physical descriptions of the Doe couple were laden with details that make their deaths all the more tragic. They were young, athletic, slender, tanned and generally described as attractive. McDaniel said the physical descriptions of the Oregon couple are very much similar to Sumter's John and Jane Doe of 1976. Height, weight, build. They all seem to match. "...even the description of Jane Doe's eyes matches that of Cordelia (McMinn)," McDaniel said. Other, more specific bits of information, such as scars and moles, made the likenesses even more alarming. Composite images and photo comparisons between the McMinns and John and Jane Doe show so many features shared by the two couples. McDaniel posted the images on one of the websleuths.com threads about the case, and the resemblance is uncanny. "Looking at these photos ... I see the same people," McDaniel wrote below the photos. "Also, I believe you can see a mole on Cordelia's cheek." The photos, provided by Michael McMinn's brother, show the missing individual as having a thick mustache. The post-autopsy photos taken by the Sumter County coroner at the time feature a clean-shaven John Doe. In an attempt to compare the John Doe to the photo of McMinn, McDaniel turned to composite artist Carl Koppelman to digitally place a mustache and a pair of glasses onto the photo of John Doe. The two images were nearly identical. Several previous investigations have reached this point, but it's the other details of McDaniel's investigation that makes this case so particularly haunting. The Match Box From the moment authorities arrived at the scene in 1976, the number of questions seemed to only multiply with very few attainable answers. The scene contained elements similar to that of an execution. No form of identification was left on either body. No driver's licenses, no credit cards, no insurance cards. Nothing. The only item left behind on either body was a match box in John Doe's pocket. Printed on the face of the box was "Grant's Truck Stop." According to McDaniel, there are only four establishments in the U.S. that have that name. Investigating all four businesses, McDaniel decided that Grant's Truck Stop in York, Neb., was the most likely place John Doe acquired the match box, seeing as how his suspected match, Michael McMinn, would have likely traveled through Nebraska to get to South Carolina from Oregon. While digging through articles featured in past editions of The Item, McDaniel found an article in which a mechanic who worked at the truck stop said he remembered helping the couple with their car. Of the details mentioned by the mechanic, one was most chilling: the couple's vehicle had license plates from either Washington or Oregon. But why would a couple travel from the Northwest to the Southeast? It's more than a 2,800-mile trip from Sumter to where the couple might be from in Oregon. "Given the way the couple was killed, it was most likely for drugs," McDaniel said. "It was an execution-style murder, as if someone put a hit out on John and Jane Doe." John Doe's T-shirt Perhaps the most incendiary details that connect McDaniel's theory about drug trafficking come from John Doe's apparel. John Doe was found lying down in a red Coors Light T-shirt. That shirt was a memorabilia item from a 1975 racing event hosted by a Georgia-based racing company called IMSA GT racing. According to archived New York Times articles, that were originally printed sometime after the couple's deaths, several members of that Georgia racing company were arrested for trafficking as much as 200,000 pounds of marijuana from the mid-'70s to the mid-'80s. The ring leader was alleged to be one of IMSA's stars, who was later imprisoned for shooting a federal witness five times, the articles read. According to McDaniel, some reports said the subject opened fire when the witness refused to get into the trunk of his car. McDaniel said that details from a police report of the crime scene indicated that it was quite possible that the Doe couple exited the rear of a vehicle, possibly the back seat or the trunk, prior to their murders. Supposedly, the gun used in the incident was a .357 Magnum, which was also the alleged weapon used in the killings of John and Jane Doe. Though the weapon from the 1976 case was eventually recovered years later, identified through ballistic studies, the gun actually turned out to be a .38 Special. A .357-caliber gun can fire .38-caliber bullets, but not vice-versa. An interesting detail is that John and Jane Doe each had a gunshot wound beneath their chins, called an "insurance" round. After serving time for the marijuana and attempted murder charges, IMSA member again found himself in the cross hairs of the law as officials sought him for questioning in the disappearance of Colleen Wood. Perhaps the shirt was a gift or simply purchased by John Doe at an event, but if the T-shirt does connect Doe to the IMSA, then it isn't farfetched to say Doe could have been one of many people employed to transport marijuana, as McDaniel hypothesized. Given the IMSA's member's apparent disposition to violence and kidnapping, John and Jane Doe's killings could have very well been an ordered hit. Full circle As if this all wasn't eerie enough, there is a potential for a penultimate creepy fact. John and Jane Doe are buried in Oswego, South Carolina. The McMinns ... are from Oswego Lake, Oregon. The Next Steps While excitement is high among some of those involved in this investigation, some remain skeptical after decades of dead-end leads and disappointing results. Former coroner of Sumter County Verna Moore spent many hours following those leads, only to be disappointed in the end. "It's been 36 years," she said. "Someone knows who they are, and I wish they'd come forward." Moore said she ran numerous tests over the years as the coroner in hopes of identifying the couple, including DNA samples. She said she can't believe John and Jane Doe haven't been identified yet. "I listened to (McDaniel), and he did a lot of research and had a lot of evidence," Moore said. "Until I see DNA matches, I can't say it's them." Naturally, that's the direction McDaniel is going. McDaniel had also been in contact with Capt. Allen Dailey of the Sumter County Sheriff's Office. Dailey hopes just as much as the others involved that the case is finally coming to a close. "We've been working with Mr. McDaniel to help with the identification of this couple as much as we can," Dailey said. "They're not forgotten." Dailey also echoed the compassionate sentiments of Verna Moore. "Those are somebody's children," Dailey said. "And they're missing them." Using DNA test results from the Doe couple and samples from the McMinns' family members, McDaniel is awaiting the results of a DNA comparison test from North Texas University. "The family is being sent DNA kits," McDaniel said in an email. "The results should be in within a couple months." If the results come back negative, then the investigative process will start over, as it has many times before. But if the McMinn couple is a match for John and Jane Doe, then investigators will get a happy ending 36 years in the making. A case that has fascinated so many and added so much color to Sumter urban folklore will be solved. Once again, there is hope. Once again, we wait. Posted in Local news, News on Sunday, August 12, 2012 Proposed Change: Michael MCMINN (I280980) Tree: Singleton and Related Families Link: http://singletonfamily.org//getperson.php?personID=I280980&tree=1 Description: My brother. His full name is John Michael McMinn. Peter McMinn petemcminn@gmail.com Proposed Change: John Michael McMINN (I280980) Tree: Singleton and Related Families Link: http://singletonfamily.org//getperson.php?personID=I280980&tree=1 Description: This report amounts to revisionism for the sake of solving the "urban folklore" case of Sumter, South Carolina. Observers should note that while the McMinn family has submitted DNA samples (National DNA Database since 2012), DNA evidence from the Sumter case has yet to be matched with it. While on one level, the facial overlay of Michael and Cordelia to John and Jane Doe is artful and persuasive, it is unfortunately the product of confirmation bias. A great number of physical characteristics between the two couples do not match, regardless of postmortem changes. Furthermore, the original coroner's report provided me by McDaniel makes no mention of very specific and identifying physical factors that both Michael and Cordelia would have exhibited even after post mortem changes. It is my sincere desire that the truth be known in both of these cases. However, to this end, drawing conclusions based upon speculation and hopeful reckoning serves no useful purpose. I recommend a) analysis of DNA evidence from the Sumter case for comparison to that available for John Michael and Cordelia McMinn, b) acquiring more physical data clearly proving either a positive or negative match. I invite anyone interested in further input by me to reach me at the given email address. Peter McMinn petemcminn@gmail.com
  _UID	88604B2B23664745A8958859FF1ABF51BAFB
  _UID	88604B2B23664745A8958859FF1ABF51BAFB
  Death	Aug 1976	Sumter County, South Carolina   [2]
  Burial	Bethel United Methodist Church Cemetery, 5575 Lodebar Road, Sumter, South Carolina   [2]
  Person ID	I280980	Singleton and Related Families
  Last Modified	18 May 2016

  
  

  Father	McMINN
  _UID	310D05CB73D844988559C253C890BA5E9878
  _UID	310D05CB73D844988559C253C890BA5E9878
  Family ID	F199174	Group Sheet  |  Family Chart

  
  

  Family	Cordelia   d. Aug 1976, Sumter County, South Carolina
  _UID	EA5C599263F0420E9AF1FD1C58D6F5AB46AA
  _UID	EA5C599263F0420E9AF1FD1C58D6F5AB46AA
  Family ID	F188896	Group Sheet  |  Family Chart
  Last Modified	23 Mar 2026

  
  

• Sources

  [S23845] Peter McMinn , Proposed Change: John Michael McMinn. [S18418] Man gets new leads on 1976 mystery couple. [S21737] Peter McMinn , Proposed Change: Michael McMinn.