Details of three unidentified bodies discovered in Leicestershire and Rutland have been featured on a new police website in the hope of finding out who they are.
The Missing Persons Bureau wants to identify a decomposed body found in a barn in Market Bosworth in February 1979.
The man – who was carrying a gold Swiss watch, three pencil stubs and a child's handkerchief – died of a heart attack about seven months earlier.
He is described as white, thin, aged around 45 to 60, with slightly prominent upper incisors and was wearing a tatty Homepride Bakery work shirt, with "district supervisor" printed on the pocket.
Bureau manager Joe Apps said the aim of the website, which was launched yesterday, was to "bring closure for the families and friends of the people featured".
He said: "With new unidentified person cases, we rely on modern forensic techniques for identification. But on older cases we look to use every tool available and believe that case publicity is the best chance of getting images recognised.
"This will be the first time families of missing people have been able to search through records for themselves and it will empower families to play an active part in the search for their loved ones."
The website includes an online profile for some of the 1,000 people the Missing Persons Bureau has on file.
Police are also hoping to identify a body found on the A508 in Market Harborough on July 10, 1975. Officers believe he had been struck by a number of vehicles.
His online profile states: "At about 9.10pm on July 9, 1975, a man of a similar description was checked by police near the scene and gave the name James Brennan. The male had an Irish accent and said he had left home on July 4 to attend a pop festival."
The thin man, aged between 20 and 35, was wearing a shirt covered in photographs of musicians and instruments, red and yellow striped trousers, and calf-length brown platform boots with a green toe band.
The third unidentified body was found by Leicestershire Police officers following a fatal accident in the A1 near Eppingham, Rutland, on November 3, 1992.
The Land Rover he was found in had caught fire and the man was badly burnt.
The vehicle had been stolen the previous day but he was not believed to have been the thief.
Police described him as aged between 20 and 50, of medium build, wearing black cotton trousers and carrying a green disposable lighter.
Detective Chief Inspector Rich Ward, of Leicestershire Police, encouraged people to help identify the men if they can.
He said: "We take all reports of missing persons very seriously and we never give up trying to find them.
"So, it is important that we try to identify the individuals listed on the national missing person's bureau website and I would encourage people to help with this."
The Missing Persons Bureau was set up four years ago and is part of the Serious and Organised Crime Agency, working with a host of charities, the Foreign Office and the Ministry of Justice to help missing people and their families.
www.missingpersons.police.uk
Leicestershire and Rutland cases White male, aged 20 to 35, found at 12.15am on July 10, 1975, on the A508, in Market Harborough. Thin and 168cm tall, dark brown hair and brown eyes. Clothing: white shirt with pictures of instruments and musicians, brown Lord Anthony brand trousers with red and yellow stripes, brown calf-length platform boots with a green toe band. Jewellery: Jowissa 17 jewel blue face calendar watch. Possessions: handkerchief, Stanley lino knife, three case keys, four-and-a-half pence, 8p stamp, blue biro, broken steel comb and foreign coins. White male, aged 45 to 60, found on February 24, 1979, in a hay barn on Wharf Farm, in Market Bosworth. Believed to have died around July 15, 1978. Thin and 170cm tall, dark brown hair with a full beard. Clothing – Blue pin stripe John Collier brand suit jacket, brown casual trousers, brown leather belt, cream short-sleeved knitted sports shirt with brown trimmings made in Portugal. Brown size nine shoes with a small diamond pattern, an old Homepride Bakery work shirt. Jewellery: A Le Cheminant Master Mariner gold-plated watch with a black strap. Possessions: Five pence, two combs, three pencil stubs, notebook, child's handkerchief, Swan Vestas matches, Tozer can, pale blue, cream and brown acrylic blanket. White male, aged 20 to 50, found on November 3, 1992, on the A1 near Empingham. Medium build. Clothing: black casual cotton trousers. Possessions: Green disposable lighter.
