Coroner: Youngstown teen, missing three years, found murdered
Human remains found in an industrial area of Youngstown last month have been identified as those of a teen who was reported missing nearly three years ago. Authorities also believe that the teen was murdered.
Human remains found in an industrial area of Youngstown last month have been identified as those of a teen who was reported missing nearly three years ago.
Authorities also believe that the teen was murdered.
After extensive forensic testing, the Mahoning County Coroner's Office announced on Friday that bones found on Wydesteel Avenue on April 8 are believed to be those of Jabreal Collins.
Authorities say Collins was 18-years-old when he was last seen on July 8, 2013.
Investigators say they found several bullet holes in the varsity jacket found at the scene and it is apparent that gunshots struck Collins in the ribs. One bullet was recovered from the fabric of the coat.
The coroner has ruled the death a homicide, and the investigation has been turned over to Youngstown police detectives.
When Collins disappeared, he was a resident of Safehouse Ministries on Eastview Drive in Youngstown.
His mother lives in Columbus and his father is an inmate of the Trumbull Correctional Institute.
The identification was made through dental records examined by forensic odontologist, Dr. Robert Johnson, and further examination of the remains by Youngstown State University anthropologist, Dr. Loren Lease.
Mahoning County Medical Examiner Dr. Joseph Orr says that he is confident within a reasonable degree of medical certainty that the skeletal remains are those of Collins.