John Doe no more. Authorities reveal identity of man found dead in Stark 4 years ago

Editor's note: This story has been updated to correct the spelling of Michael Allan Leach's middle name.

CANTON ‒ A man whose remains were found more than four years ago next to an oil well in Pike Township has been identified as a Tuscarawas County man who had disappeared.

The Stark County Sheriff's Office, Ohio Attorney General's Office and DNA Doe Project identified the deceased as Michael Allan Leach, who had lived in Dover. He was believed to have been 61 at the time of his death, which is estimated to have occurred in 2018.

"He appeared to have lived a rough life," Stark County Coroner Dr. Ronald Rusnak said Thursday morning at a news conference detailing the identification process. "His life did not end as we would hope our lives do."

Although Rusnak said the cause of death is undetermined, the sheriff's office is investigating it as a homicide based on injuries evident from the remains.

"Michael was found to have a significant skull fracture that came over his cheek on the left-hand side," Rusnak said. "He had bilateral shoulder fractures. He had multiple rib fractures on both chest cavities."

Rusnak said that sometimes, if people die in an accident, they are left behind by others who get nervous and "clean the scene."

He said it is not possible to determine at this time whether Leach died from an accident or homicide.

Who was Michael Allan Leach?

Sheriff's Inspector William Jones said Leach had a history of misdemeanor offenses in Tuscarawas County.

He said no missing persons report had been filed about his disappearance.

A woman had asked Dover police to check on Leach's well-being the morning of Aug. 4, 2017. The caller, who remained anonymous, said he had not been seen in weeks.

Police found the windows open. A fan was on in the residence. The TV appeared to be on, but displayed a blank screen. No one answered the door. No odor was detected.

Police tried to contact the landlord but got no answer.

Leach had stayed at a shelter in New Philadelphia, the Friends of the Homeless, before moving to Dover.

Calvin White, executive director of Friends of the Homeless, said Leach was in the shelter for a couple of months in 2017 before he found housing in Dover.

White said he was a good guest who participated in occupational therapy programming. He remembered Leach as a pleasant guy who smiled a lot, didn't cause any problems and obeyed the rules.

"He was the kind of person we're here to try to help," White said.

The DNA matching effort that led to the discovery of his identity also allowed detectives to speak with Leach's relatives. They include a sister and two half-sisters.

"They spoke to Michael every few years, so it wasn't a relationship that they had on a daily, weekly basis," Jones said. "They would go several years and not have any contact. His family was a split family. There wasn't a lot of contact with his family."

He agreed with Rusnak that Leach had lived a rough life. He said Leach was originally from Tuscarawas County, worked there, and had moved several times.

'When we had this case initially, we knew nothing.'

Jones said the identification of Leach "has been huge for the detectives working it. When we had this case initially, we knew nothing. We didn't know where he was from. We didn't know his family. We didn't know his friends. We didn't know his routine. So learning the identity has provided several leads, one being just that — the family.

"We're kind of looking for the public now, to see if anyone knew him well enough that could provide information to us. We have conducted several interviews in this case. The sisters, the friends that we've spoke to, they have provided a great deal of information to help us learn, kind of, the routine that Mr. Leach had. We have spoken to employers that employed him," Jones said.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NL0-cG0MQZU

Where was Michael Allan Leach found?

Leach's skeletal remains were found March 31, 2020, near the 5200 block of Sandy Avenue SE.

Jones described the location as a rural, wooded, secluded county road with an oil well. He said the remains were found 60 to 70 feet from the road.

"You would think that you wouldn't accidentally wander to this location," Jones said.

In a previous attempt to identify the remains, a forensic artist with the Ohio Bureau of Criminal Investigation had created a clay facial reconstruction of the man at the request of the Stark County Coroner’s Office.

Know this man? Stark County authorities unveil reconstruction of unidentified man

Maier and Ohio Attorney General Dave Yost later unveiled a forensic reconstruction of the deceased in August 2021. And, in September 2023, law enforcement released additional digitally created images of the then-unknown man.

Maier took the case to the DNA Doe Project to try investigative genetic genealogy to determine the identity of the unidentified man. The DNA Doe Project is a nonprofit with a mission to identify John and Jane Does using investigative genetic genealogy.

A sample of bone was later submitted for laboratory analysis to generate a DNA profile that was then uploaded to GEDmatch Pro. Then, volunteer investigative genetic genealogists with the DNA Doe Project took 105 hours to build out the family tree to locate the branch of Michael Leach. The identification was confirmed through a direct DNA match with a close family member.

Traci Onders, a Cleveland resident who volunteers with the DNA Doe Project, said the organization has provided leads for over 120 cases of unidentified remains since its founding in 2017.

"Recognizing the dignity and personhood of unidentified remains restores respect for those left behind, rectifies injustices and acknowledges the loss to our community and to society," she said.

Samantha Molnar, a criminal intelligence analyst with the Ohio Bureau of Criminal Investigation, urged members of the public to notify law enforcement if their friends, neighbors or relatives are missing. She said there are more than 100 cases of unidentified human remains in Ohio.

Anyone with information about Leach's death is asked to contact the Stark County Sheriff’s Office at 330-430-3800. The public can also communicate with the office using the mobile app, which can be downloaded for free via the app store on any smartphone by searching Stark Sheriff Ohio.

Times-Reporter staff writer Jon Baker contributed to this story.

Reach Nancy at 330-580-8382 or nancy.molnar@cantonrep.com. On X, formerly known as Twitter: @nmolnarTR

This article originally appeared on The Repository: Authorities identify Michael Leach as man found dead in Stark in 2020