A cold case murder dating back nearly 50 years in New Jersey has been partially solved. New Jersey State Police investigators have identified a teenager whose remains were discovered in a shallow grave in Salem County in 1979. However, detectives are still trying to determine who killed him and w hy. For decades, Robert Dean Irelan was known only as a John Doe. “They had no identification found on the victim. He was wearing some clothes that had an initial on his jacket,” Detective Sgt. John Menafra of the New Jersey State Police Cold Case Unit said. The case began in June 1979 when a person walking through woods off a dirt road in Salem County’s Quinton Township found partially decomposed human remains. Investigators said the body had been buried in a shallow grave in a remote area. An autopsy determined the victim, who was believed to be 16 or 17 years old, had been killed in late 1978 or early 1979. “We had a .22 caliber projectile that was removed from the victim’s skull,” Menafra said. The breakthrough came after the New Jersey State Police Cold Case Unit reopened the investigation three years ago. Using DNA extracted from a bone, the Ramapo College of New Jersey Investigative Genetic Genealogy Center developed a family tree that led investigators to living relatives. Last summer, authorities positively identified the victim as Irelan. “Through IGG we were able to provide that identification and give him back his name and also give his family some answers,” Tracie Boyle of the Ramapo College Investigative Genetic Genealogy Center said. Investigators learned Irelan had four siblings and that his family lived in Pleasantville, near Atlantic City, about 50 miles from Quinton Township. How Irelan ended up in Salem County remains one of several unanswered questions. “Who he was with prior to going missing and what occurred to unfortunately have a bullet put through his head?” Menafra said. Investigators said Irelan had no known ties to the area where his remains were found. They do not know whether he was killed in Quinton Township or whether his body was left there after his death. “If you saw him at a convenience store in 1978 before you went elsewhere and saw him go off with somebody else but don’t know, that’s awesome information that could hopefully lead us down a road that could put us to a timeline for him,” Menafra said. Detectives are asking anyone who may remember seeing Irelan or who has information about the case to come forward, saying even the smallest detail could help them put the missing pieces of this mystery in place. This story was originally reported for broadcast by NBC Philadelphia. AI tools helped convert the story to a digital article, and an NBC Philadelphia journalist edited the article for publication. ...read more read less