It was 20 years ago this weekend that the body of a European tourist was found in a creek in Manassas, and police are again asking for help to solve the case.
On Sept. 17, 1999, 62-year-old Johannes De Hart arrived from the Netherlands to Atlanta. Prince William County police say it was 11 days later, Sept. 28, 1999, that he was found dead in a creek near Mace Street.
It took a while before De Hart was even identified, and police said they don’t believe he was killed where he was found.
The creek runs through a residential neighborhood and is just a few blocks away from the Manassas Park police station.
It’s 600 miles away from the airport he flew into.
Police said he died from “blunt force trauma.”
On Saturday, the anniversary of the day De Hart’s body was found, police asked for the public’s help again, hoping someone who might know what happened 20 years ago is finally willing to speak up.
On Sept 28, 1999, an #unidentified body was found in a creek behind 9325 Mace Street in Manassas. A composite was created & he was identified as a tourist from the Netherlands. Johannes De Hart had entered the country on Sept 17, 1999 in Atlanta. He died from blunt force trauma. pic.twitter.com/a40b38yJT4
— Prince William PD (@PWCPolice) September 28, 2019
