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Police are preparing to announce the identity of the "Boy in the Box" next week, putting an end to the 65-year-old Philadelphia mystery.
The identity of the boy, how he died, and who was responsible have stumped police and experts for decades.
Details surrounding the child have been shrouded in mystery, but new DNA evidence has allowed police to confidently identify him and even find his birth certificate, according to an NBC Philadelphia report.
What We Know About the Boy in the Box
On February 25, 1957, a boy between the ages of three and seven was found dead, naked and beaten lying in a cardboard box on the side of Susquehanna Road in the neighborhood of Fox Chase in Philadelphia.
Since his discovery, the Philadelphia police department has attempted to identify him and piece together what happened. Multiple theories have been suggested and disproved over the years.
The boy does have a headstone at the Ivy Hill Cemetery in Cedarbrook, Philadelphia, that reads "America's Unknown Child," however, once his true identity has been revealed this headstone may be changed.
There is also a plaque dedicated to the mystery child at the location where the box was found. The area has been significantly built upon since 1957 and is no longer the rural area it once was.
The plaque reads: "February 26, 1957, Police Officers Elmer Palmer and Samuel Weinstein responded to the-then rural Susquchamna Road to investigate a report of a body found in a box.
"There they discovered the naked, battered body of a small boy believed to be 4-6 years old.
"This unknown child became known as the "Boy in the Box" He has never been identified. His case remains open. He is now called 'America's Unknown Child'".
The child's body has been exhumed twice and each time DNA has been extracted. The most recent DNA sample has allowed authorities to identify the mystery child.
The boy's DNA has been traced to a prominent family in Delaware County, according to the NBC Philadelphia report.
The Philadelphia Police Captain Jason Smith last year spoke to the media as authorities were getting close to their breakthrough.
Speaking to NBC10 he said:" There have been rapid developments as it pertains to that investigation."
He also noted that the boy's identity was just the beginning. He said that the investigation will begin all over again and police will start searching for a suspect.
Newsweek has contacted the Philadelphia Police Department for comment.
About the writer
Gerrard Kaonga is a Newsweek U.S. News Reporter and is based in London, U.K. His focus is reporting on U.S. ... Read more