YORK COUNTY, Pa. (WHP) — After more than a decade of investigation, West Manchester Township Police has announced the skeletal remains connected to a homicide have been identified as as man from Baltimore.
David Anthony Queen, 42, went missing on Nov. 6, 2006. He was last seen heading to his job at McDonalds. Officials are not sure if he ever arrived.
His mother officially reported him missing on Dec. 8, 2006.
In November 2013, tree trimmers found a skeleton around the intersection of Loucks Road and Haviland Road in West Manchester Township. Officials later classified the death as a homicide due to the trauma shown on the bones.
Originally the remains were thought to belong to a Caucasian man around 30 to 50 years old ranging from 5’3” to 5’10” tall. That was believed to be the case for seven years before the DNA Doe Project generated a DNA profile that revealed the remains belonged to a black John Doe.
DNA Doe Project is a nonprofit founded in 2017. The nonprofit’s mission is to use investigative genetic genealogy to identify those that have died without the dignity of having a name.
For five years the DNA Doe Project worked to identify the John Doe, with York County District Attorney, Tim Barker, announcing Wednesday in a press conference that the remains were of Queen.
His closest relative match shared only 1.7% of DNA with him.
On Christmas Eve 2025, the DNA Doe Project found Queen had family ties to multiple DNA matches of the unidentified victim. Within less than two weeks Sgt. Krout learned that Queen had been missing for twenty years, and further investigation confirmed the DNA match.
Traci Onders, Director of Case Management DNA Doe Project, said, “The identification happened because persistent genealogy work was paired with persistent police work.”
Barker said that the next phase of the investigation is uncovering who killed Queen.
According to the DNA Doe Project, the trauma found on Queen’s bones determined his death was a homicide.
Detective Sgt. Conway of West Manchester Township Police is the lead official investigating Queen’s killing.
Officials said it was within the scope of probabilities that Queen was killed where he was found, but can’t say for sure until further investigation proceeds.
“Sometimes we can get the truth in a day. Sometimes a month. Sometimes a year. Sometimes 30 years. We have seen all of that occur in York County, but through it all we have obtained truth and sought justice,” Barker said.
Conway said Queen did not have a known history with the West Manchester Township Police or any members of the police department, making his life and whereabouts unknown to those on the force.
The family has been notified and officials are hoping this breakthrough renews the momentum in the homicide investigation and help generate new leads
Anyone with any information on Queen’s life is encouraged to contact the West Manchester Police Department.
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