Lake Mead Barrel Victim Identified; Killer Unknown

Authorities identified the remains found in a rusted barrel at Lake Mead in 2022 as Edward Lelburian “Buddy” Jackson, an Arkansas native who was in his mid-to-late 50s when he died. DNA analysis and forensic genetic genealogy, including work by Oklahoma State University students, helped identify him after years of investigation. Jackson had been shot in the head and was likely killed in the late 1970s or early 1980s. His family last saw him in Arkansas in the early 1980s and said he traveled frequently; investigators have not established why he was in the Las Vegas area. Police have not identified a killer and say there is no evidence linking the death to organized crime, and they are retracing Jackson’s final movements and seeking information from people who may have known him.