'John Doe' identified in decades-old Florida cold case death

ORLANDO, Fla. - There has been a significant break in a cold case dating back three decades. A John Doe, found dead in Winter Park, has finally been identified thanks to scientific advancement.

Out of the 500-plus cold cases at the Orange County Sheriff’s Office (OCSO), 12 victims were unidentified. Following this latest news, the number has dropped to 11. One of their unidentified victims now has a name: Paul Laurence Rougeux, Jr. 

"Everybody called him Larry," said OCSO Det. Scott Lowen. "We were able to say, ‘This is Larry.’"

Orange County Homicide Detective Scott Lowen works in the cold case unit. Lowen said Rougeux’s remains were found in June 2000 near the Calibre Bend apartments in Winter Park. A single bullet hole was found in his skull.

"He was described as a smooth talker," Lowen said. "He wasn’t ever known to be a violent person. He was into different things, and he did get arrested a couple of times. That’s what a lot of the family members really kinda thinking had happened, that he was in prison somewhere, and they weren’t able to locate him because of that."

Detectives say Rougeux was murdered and quite some time ago.

"The anthropologist at the time, along with the odontologist, figured that he was probably out in the elements for a good seven, eight years," Lowen said. "We believe he was left there in ‘92, ‘93."

This cold case is heating up thirty years later, thanks to Texas-based company Othram.

"We exclusively generate human ID from forensic evidence," said Michael Vogen, Othram’s director of account management.

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According to Vogen, Othram’s technique goes far beyond traditional DNA testing. From local law enforcement to federal agencies, they have helped identify victims and suspects in thousands of cases.

"What we’re doing is building a much more complex DNA profile consisting of hundreds of thousands of markers of DNA, and with that profile, we can upload it to databases and go find very distant relatives and reverse engineer our way back to the direct family line," Vogen said.

Over 90% of the unidentified victims they get are skeletal remains, Vogen said. DNA extraction leads to analysis and forensic-grade genome sequencing.

"It feels like science fiction, but it’s science fact. We now have a technique here that can be applied to these cases to resolve them," Vogen said. "There’s no case that should be left behind. No one should wait decades for answers."

This answer provided closure for the family, which had been searching for Rougeux for years, but for the homicide detectives, it's back to square one, with the added challenge of competing against the clock.

"People move away, people pass away… stuff like that, so that is a problem when you start working a case that’s been around for this long," Lowen. "We’re just hoping to get anybody that knew him to call in and give information to help us get a starting point."

Rougeux grew up in central Florida. According to Lowen, he lived not far from where his remains were found. As for motives, the OCSO has a few theories. Now that they have identified him, they hope old friends and acquaintances can fill in some gaps by calling their office.

Anyone with information about Rougeux's acquaintances, frequent locations, or lifestyle is asked to come forward. Tips can be anonymously reported to Central Florida Crimeline by calling 800-423-TIPS (8477). For more information about Othram and its DNA forensic sequencing efforts, head here.  For information on their solved cases and its efforts to fund unsolved cases, head here.