CHARLOTTE — The Cold Case Unit with the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department has identified a 2016 deceased victim as Kenneth Robert McCarthy using forensic investigative genetic genealogy.
The skeletal remains were discovered on January 29, 2016, in a wooded area near the 5800 block of University Pointe Boulevard in Charlotte.
Despite efforts to identify the victim through conventional means, the case remained unsolved until advanced DNA testing was conducted.
“Mr. McCarthy’s family never stopped searching for him, and they have expressed their gratitude for the many team members who worked to identify him.”
In 2022, a bone sample from the remains was sent to Othram Labs in Texas for advanced DNA testing.
The genetic profile obtained was loaded into genealogy databases GEDmatch and Family Tree DNA, but initial searches did not yield results.
In 2025, the CMPD Cold Case Unit collaborated with the Ramapo College of New Jersey Investigative Genetic Genealogy Center.
A team of volunteer investigative genetic genealogists worked for over six months, eventually providing a potential identity for the victim.
Detectives contacted McCarthy’s family, who confirmed he had been missing since 2013.
A DNA profile from a close relative confirmed his identity. McCarthy, originally from New Jersey, had been living in Charlotte and working in the IT field.
The Cold Case Unit continues to work on identifying at least eight other victims, with cases dating back to 1932.
VIDEO: Unsolved murder of Andre Wilson haunts family years after his death
©2025 Cox Media Group
/cloudfront-us-east-1.images.arcpublishing.com/cmg/LH3JSJEF3VBLRJLJQESEAG34AM.png)
