r/gratefuldoe – Susquehanna River John Doe 2021 identified as 31-year-old Shane Allen Workman

Five years after his remains were discovered, the DNA Doe Project and their agency partners have identified Susquehanna River John Doe as 31-year-old Shane Allen Workman. Workman went missing from his home in Lewistown, Pennsylvania on April 25, 2017, over four years before his partial remains were discovered 60 miles away in Lancaster County.

Read our full press release here: https://dnadoeproject.org/case/susquehanna-river-john-doe-2021/

“Lancaster County, PA – Five years after his remains were discovered, the DNA Doe Project and their agency partners have identified Susquehanna River John Doe as 31-year-old Shane Allen Workman. Workman went missing from his home in Lewistown, Pennsylvania on April 25, 2017, over four years before his partial remains were discovered 60 miles away in Lancaster County.

On July 25, 2021, a duck hunter found three bones on a rocky islet in the Susquehanna River in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania. The tattered remains of some clothing, a pocket knife, a cigarette lighter, and fishing gear were all found near the remains. DNA testing later revealed that the bones belonged to a Caucasian male.

The Lancaster County Coroner’s Office later brought this case to the DNA Doe Project, whose expert investigative genetic genealogists work pro bono to identify John and Jane Does.

A team from the DNA Doe Project began research on this case in March 2026 and started making headway immediately. They quickly discovered that some of the unidentified man’s ancestors were from Appalachia, while others were Irish immigrants who settled in Philadelphia. As their research progressed, the team identified a couple from West Virginia as the great grandparents of Susquehanna River John Doe. Shortly thereafter, following just three weeks of research, they made a significant discovery.

“We were looking into our family of interest when we realised that one branch had relocated from Arizona to Pennsylvania,” said team leader Monique Platt. “The crucial breakthrough came just minutes later when we found a missing person report for a member of that family, who had not been seen since 2017.”

The missing person was Shane Workman, who was last seen leaving his Lewistown home to walk to a nearby gas station. He had a teenage daughter at the time he went missing, and his family made extensive efforts to find him in the years following his disappearance.

With the evidence lining up, the DNA Doe Project team presented Workman as a candidate to the Lancaster County Coroner’s Office. Further DNA analysis later confirmed that the man found in 2021 was, in fact, Shane Workman.

The DNA Doe Project is grateful to the groups and individuals who helped solve this case: the Lancaster County Coroner’s Office, who entrusted us with this case; Tetracore, Inc. for the lab work; GEDmatch Pro for providing their database; Bode Technology for the confirmatory testing; our generous donors who joined our mission and contributed to this case; and the DNA Doe Project’s dedicated teams of volunteer investigative genetic genealogists who work tirelessly to bring all our John and Jane Does home.

Description:

On July 25, 2021, a duck hunter found three bones on an island outcropping in the Susquehanna River near Ely Island, Pennsylvania. The tattered remains of some clothing, a pocket knife, cigarette lighter, and fishing gear were found near the remains. Initial DNA testing indicates the remains are male.”