Skeletal remains found nearly 40 years ago in Twinsburg, OH has now been identified as those of U.S. Army veteran and guitarist/songwriter for the R&B group the O’Jays, Frank “Frankie” Little Jr.
In a release, Twinsburg Police Chief Thomas Mason said Little’s remains were discovered on Feb. 18, 1982, and his identity remained a mystery for nearly four decades.
In October of this year, genealogical research by the DNA Doe Project provided the names of potential living relatives, who were able to provide Little’s name. A close relative provided a DNA sample, which was analyzed by the Ohio Bureau of Criminal Investigation Crime Lab. Little’s identity was then confirmed by Dr. Lisa Kohler of the Summit County Medical Examiner’s Office.
Little’s partial remains were recovered in a garbage bag behind a now-closed business on Cannon Road in Twinsburg. 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 Kohler.
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Little was raised in Cleveland. In the mid-1960s. In addition to being a guitarist and songwriter for the O’Jays, he served in the Army for two years, which included a deployment to Vietnam during the Vietnam War.
Little’s daughter 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.” the release states. “Not much is known about his disappearance and death.”
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Little’s 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.
Reach Julia LeDoux at Julia@connectingvets.com.