MEDIA RELEASE

John Doe 28

The unidentified individual the FBI is seeking is known only as John Doe 28. Video of the man engaging in sexually explicit activities with a young boy was discovered online in November 2012 by the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children (NCMEC), an organization that works closely with the Bureau to stop child predators.

The video contains a brief image of the alleged predator, which investigators hope will lead to his identification—and the recovery of the exploited child. “Subjects who show their faces in child pornography are not typical,” said Special Agent Karen Jurden. “It is our hope that someone will recognize this individual and come forward. We were able to recover a very clear image of John Doe 28.”

Working with NCMEC, investigators in the Violent Crimes Against Children program have enhanced other details from the video that could be clues to help identify the suspect. For example, the video shows the individual and the victim inside a residence with what appears to be a blue chair and a picture hanging on a wall in the background. Someone familiar with the house might easily recognize the chair. Also, John Doe 28 is wearing wire-framed glasses and a burgundy T-shirt with a fish logo on it.

John Doe 28 with chair and picture

There are no details linking the suspect to a particular area, but Jurden said investigators believe he may be a U.S. citizen because he speaks one word during the video—“careful”—which is in English.

“Sometimes we will get some type of identifier that narrows down the geographic region,” said Jurden, who has been investigating crimes against children for the last four years, “but that didn’t happen in this case. That’s why we are asking for the public’s help nationwide.”

The video is just over two minutes long and was recovered during the arrest of a San Francisco man on child pornography charges. “The video was part of his collection,” Jurden added, explaining that sexually explicit videos and images of children are often traded anonymously through online forums.

The efforts to identify and apprehend John Doe 28 are part of the FBI’s Operation Rescue Me and Endangered Child Alert Program (ECAP) initiatives and represent a longstanding partnership with NCMEC. Operation Rescue Me identifies child victims of sexual exploitation by using sophisticated image analysis to obtain evidence. ECAP seeks public and media assistance to help identify the John and Jane Does who display their faces—and other distinguishing characteristics such as tattoos—in pornographic images and videos of children.

T-shirt with fish logo

Since the inception of ECAP in 2004, 28 John/Jane Does have been investigated; 20 of these cases have been successfully resolved so far. These investigations have led to the identification of nearly 70 child victims.

John Doe 28 appears to be a Caucasian male in his 30s or 40s who has a receding hairline and wears wire-framed glasses. Anyone with information should submit a tip online or call the FBI’s toll-free tip line at 1-800-CALL-FBI.

“We need to identify John Doe 28,” Jurden said, “so we can make sure no harm comes to that little boy.”