Lake Mead barrel victim, dead from gunshot, identified as Edward ‘Buddy’ Jackson, Arkansas native
by Brad Matthews · The Washington TimesAuthorities in the Las Vegas area announced Thursday the identity of a man found in a barrel in Lake Mead in May 2022, dead from a gunshot to the head.
The victim was Edward Lelburian Jackson, Clark County Coroner Melanie Rouse said at a news conference, though he also went by Buddy.
Jackson’s remains were discovered on May 1, 2022, due to dropping water levels on Lake Mead.
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At the time the barrel was found, investigators determined that the victim died in the 1970s or 1980s due to the clothes he was wearing. Ms. Rouse said Jackson was in his mid- to late 50s at the time of his death.
Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department Lt. Robert Price said at the news conference that despite public speculation about possible mob involvement in the case, “we don’t have any information to support those theories. With these new developments, homicide detectives will continue to work diligently to solve this crime.”
Jackson was not a Las Vegas local, hailing originally from Arkansas. Family members said he traveled around the country and that they last saw him in the early 1980s.
Jackson also lived in California and Utah, having been convicted in the Salt Lake City area for aggravated arson and conspiracy to commit fraud, Lt. Price said.
The delay in identifying Jackson was partly because he was never reported missing, Ms. Rouse said.
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A facial composite of Jackson was uploaded to a national database in 2023, but it took the aid of the Oklahoma State University School of Forensic Sciences to find a close enough DNA match to confirm Jackson’s identity, Ms. Rouse said.
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