San Bernardino County Sheriff Coroner Identifies 1974 Baker Crash John Doe on November 10: Terrance Lee Ronco, Age 20 from Indiana, Named through Genetic Genealogy
San Bernardino County, California — The San Bernardino County Sheriff Coroner Division announced on November 10 that a man who died in a 1974 collision on Interstate 15 near Baker has been positively identified through investigative genetic genealogy as Terrance Lee Ronco, a 20 year old native of Valparaiso, Indiana.
The department said that on November 8, 1974, a van traveling near Baker collided with a truck and caught fire. The driver and one of three passengers, a hitchhiker picked up along the way, died. The driver was identified, but the hitchhiker remained unidentified for more than five decades and was believed to be between 20 and 30 years old.
Over the years, the coroner office entered dental records into the Missing and Unidentified Persons System, submitted DNA for forensic analysis and upload to the Combined DNA Index System, and entered the case into the National Missing and Unidentified Persons System, without an identification. Ronco had never been reported missing.
In February 2026, the Sheriff Department partnered with the DNA Doe Project, with support from the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children. Volunteer genealogists identified Ronco as a candidate after four days of research, with family connections to Indiana and the greater Chicago area, and deputy coroner investigators then confirmed the identification.
The department said Ronco, a military veteran, had been out of contact with his family for decades.
来源链接：圣贝纳迪诺县警局验尸官新闻发布页11月10日条目（县警局） https://wp.sbcounty.gov/sheriff/media-center/coroner-press-release/
Published by GSM · USA (original Chinese edition)
Photo: Wikipedia/Wikimedia Commons 词条主图：San Bernardino, California
Orange County Veterans Advisory Council 2026 Schedule Moves November Meeting to November 18 at 2 PM Due to the November 11 Veterans Day Holiday2026-11-11
Los Angeles County Supervisors Vote on November 10 to Study Expanded Advertising Through Local, Ethnic and Community Media: County CEO to Report Back in 120 Days2026-11-11