A man who was found dead in the banks of the Delaware River more than 20 years ago has now been identified, police said.
On Oct. 19, 2003, two fishermen discovered the body of a man in a drainage area on the Yellow Freight Property at 2627 State Road in Bensalem Township. The man had no identification and his description didn’t match any reports of missing persons in the area at the time.
An autopsy determined the cause of death was drowning and there was no trauma to the body. Investigators did not determine a manner of death however.
While investigators obtained partial fingerprints, they didn’t match any known fingerprints in the national database. Investigators also obtained samples for DNA comparison.
Get Philly local news, weather forecasts, sports and entertainment stories to your inbox. Sign up for NBC Philadelphia newsletters.
The unidentified man was buried in the Doylestown Cemetery as investigators continued to work to identify him. For the next 19 years, Bensalem Police compared the man to numerous missing person reports they received.
In December 2022, Bensalem Police obtained hair samples from the Bucks County Coroner’s Office that were collected during the autopsy. Those samples were sent to a private laboratory where a DNA profile was obtained.
The nonprofit agency Cold Case Initiative then joined the investigation and funded a genetic genealogy search of public DNA databases by a genealogist, officials said.
Local
Breaking news and the stories that matter to your neighborhood.
The investigation then led them to Edward Nece of Riverside, New Jersey. On Oct. 19, 2023, exactly 20 years after the body was discovered, Nece told investigators that his son went missing 20 years prior. Nece provided a DNA sample that was then compared to the DNA recovered from the unidentified man. The DNA match then confirmed that man was Nece’s son, Edward Anthony Nece.
"We would like to recognize the diligent effort of Bensalem Township Police Department detectives and the Cold Case Initiative partnership," a Bensalem Police spokesperson wrote. "Without their assistance, the family of Edward Anthony Nece would still be wondering what happened to their loved one."
While the man has been identified, officials have not said if they've determined a manner of death or if any foul play was involved.
