Mississippi attorney faked his death four decades ago and now science can identify the victim he used as a body double
Over 40 years later, a Mississippi mystery finally has a realistic chance of being solved. Investigators were initially puzzled by a 1980’s murder that appeared to be a prominent local attorney who was found burned in his vehicle. After further investigation, the case took a wild twist that would leave local residents with a question that would linger for over 40 years, who was the actual victim?
Photo of Edward Cates vehicle
Image shared by the Department of Justice. A bundle of cash found in the suspect’s residence, with the same label attached that is used by the casino.
On May 14th of 1983, news began to spread quickly that a local attorney and former commissioner was found in a nearby county deceased in his vehicle. Madison County law enforcement discovered a badly burnt car with a man inside who had been charred beyond recognition. They quickly learned that the vehicle belonged to Edward Cates, a prominent individual in Jackson, Mississippi.
Cates had left his home earlier that day and left behind a note for his wife to let her know that he was headed out to Madison County for an appointment. At the time, Cates was dealing with financial problems and attempted to solve them through embezzlement.
Over $200,000 was embezzled to pay for his personal debts and contributions to maintain the community appearance that he did not want to let go of, such as donations to his church and the Boy Scouts, and his membership fees at he American Legion and a gun club.
One of Cates’ shoes were found in the vehicle and identified by his wife as being his, there was no way to identify the body due to the extensive charring. The body was missing teeth and had multiple injuries such as leg fractures, broken ribs and a broken vertebrae.
Edward Cates was known by many people in his community due to the various positions he held. At various times he was an attorney, a commissioner, a deacon at his church, and he had gained the trust of many due to his former service as an Army Reserve colonel and Korean war veteran.
Just days after the discovery of his burnt car and charred remains, the former colonel was laid to rest with full military honors at a funeral that was attended by family, friends, local residents, prominent individuals and the Jackson Mayor.
Cates was laid to rest, but the investigation into his death had only begun.
Photo of Edward Cates
As investigators continued to search for answers and find out who burnt the vehicle with Cates inside, they found evidence that Cates’ wife was receiving money from a retired major general by the name of Christopher Curtis in Lawrenceville, Georgia.
Investigators in Georgia had more questions after finding that the retired major looked an awful lot like Edward Cates. It quickly became clear that the man who was buried with full military honors was not Cates, and further investigation revealed that Cates had embezzled over $200,000 from a client and then faked his death.
Cates was arrested and charged with capital murder and embezzlement. By January of 1984 he entered a plea negotiation that would dropped the murder charge down to manslaughter, resulting in only a 20 year prison sentence.
The guilty plea did not include any information about the remains that were found in his vehicle charred. Cates refused to provide any information about who he murdered and used as a body double. Investigators were never able to connect the victim to any known missing individuals or local residents.
In 1990, Cates died in prison without ever revealing any information about the victim. And to this day, the individual who was murdered by Cates remains unnamed.
Investigators were unsure if they would ever learn who the victim was, until now. Advancements in science and DNA forensics has provided a new path to solving the final piece of this Jackson, Mississippi mystery. Investigators have teamed up with the DNA superheroes in Texas at Othram Labs to identify the victim found in the vehicle in 1983.
The DNA professionals at Othram Labs have a website that allows the public to assist them in clearing the backlog of past cases by donating the funds needed to test DNA. New scientific methods have allowed Othram Labs to collect DNA and track down the source of the DNA through forensic genetic genealogy.
If you would like to assist in the final steps of this 42-year-old case and help give the victim their name back, you can donate directly at DNA Solves. The total cost to attempt to identify this individual will cost $7,500.