Human Remains Recovered in 1982 Have Been Identified

Frank “Frankie” Little Jr. was a guitarist and song writer for the band the O’Jays and combat veteran who mysteriously disappeared in 1982.

CITY OF TWINSBURG POLICE DEPARTMENT PRESS RELEASE
THOMAS MASON – CHIEF OF POLICE

Thanks to the genealogical research of the DNA Doe Project, unidentified remains discovered on February 18, 1982, have been identified as Frank “Frankie” Little Jr., born in 1943, from Cleveland, Ohio. His identity remained a mystery for almost 40 years.

In October, 2021, the DNA Doe Project provided the names of potential living relatives, who were able to provide Frank’s name. A close relative provided a DNA sample, which was analyzed by the Ohio Bureau of Criminal Investigation Crime Lab. His identity was then confirmed by Dr. Lisa Kohler of the Summit County Medical Examiner’s Office.

Frank’s partial remains were recovered in a garbage bag behind a now-closed business on Cannon Road. The remains were that of an African-American male, 20 to 35 years of age, approximately 5’6” tall, and he may have had adolescent kyphosis, a curvature of the spine. His manner of death has been ruled a homicide by Dr. Kohler.

Frank was raised in Cleveland, Ohio. In the mid-1960s, Frank was a guitarist and song writer for the band the O’Jays. He served in the US Army for two years, which included a deployment to Vietnam during the Vietnam War. Frank had a daughter who passed away in 2012, and he has a son who has not yet been located or identified. Frank was last known to reside in the area of E 105th and Superior Ave. in Cleveland, and it is believed he was last alive in the mid-1970s. Not much is known about his disappearance and death. Our sympathies to the family during this difficult time.

His identification was made through the collaborative efforts of the Twinsburg Police Department, the DNA Doe Project, the Ohio Attorney General’s Office Bureau of Criminal Investigation, and the Summit County Medical Examiner’s Office.

Questions and any information about Frank Little’s case can be directed to Det. Eric Hendershott, 330-405-5679, ehendershott@twinsburg.oh.us.