The Man in the Sanford Woods Has a Name: John Richard Moulis

John Richard Moulis was born in Wisconsin. He moved to the Orlando area in the mid-1980s. WFTV reported that he moved in 1986 or 1987. FOX 35 Orlando reported around 1986.

He lived at Ridge Club Apartments. He worked in janitorial services at Splendid China in Kissimmee. FOX 35 reported that he may also have worked for a construction contractor connected to Walt Disney World.

Police described him as a son, a brother, and an uncle. “John was part of a large family that loved him,” Sanford police public information officer Bianca Gillett said, FOX 35 Orlando reported on Oct. 15, 2026.

Missing, then found without a name

John was 37 when he disappeared. He was reported missing from the Orlando area in January 1997.

On March 24, 1997, police found skeletal remains in a wooded area near Fulton Street and Mangoustine Avenue in Sanford, Florida. Two people walking their dog had discovered them. No identification was found at the scene.

For many years, no one could say who he was.

How he got his name back

Many groups worked to bring John home:

• Pinellas County Medical Examiner’s Office: In 2023, investigators sent it a tooth to build a DNA profile. The profile went into CODIS, a national DNA database. It found no match.
• A forensic genetic genealogy grant program gave the case money in 2025, WFTV reported.
• Volusia County Medical Examiner’s Office helped investigators send bone samples to Othram.
• Othram, a DNA lab, did more DNA testing on those samples.
• Florida Department of Law Enforcement (FDLE) did genetic genealogy work. That kind of search uses DNA shared with distant relatives to find a family. In July, FDLE told Sanford investigators about a possible match to a close relative, WFTV reported.
• Sanford Police Department led the case. A DNA sample from that relative helped confirm who he was. Police positively identified him on Aug. 31.

His sister

John’s sister was his closest surviving relative. “His sister, which was the closest relative, passed two days after the identification was made,” Gillett said, WFTV reported on Oct. 15, 2026. “She had wondered what happened to her brother her whole life.”

Gillett added: “I know that is meaningful to the investigators, that they were able to give that closure to her before she passed.”

Sanford Police Chief Cecil Smith said in a police release, as quoted by WFTV on Oct. 15, 2026: “For almost 30 years, John’s family has agonized over not knowing what happened to him.”

His case is open

Police said the case is now an active homicide investigation, WFTV reported. No arrest has been reported in the news coverage we checked. Detectives are piecing together John’s life in Central Florida. They want to find people who knew him in the mid-1990s.

If you knew John, or know anything at all, please reach out.

Tip line as published by WFTV on Oct. 15, 2026:

• Anyone who knew Moulis or has information about his disappearance or killing is asked to contact Sanford police or Crimeline at 800-423-TIPS (8477).
• WFTV reported that calls to Crimeline remain anonymous.

For a long time, John was a man with no name. Now we can say it. His name is John Richard Moulis.

Sources

1. “Orlando man missing since 1997 identified as victim found in Sanford woods,” WFTV (Brody Wooddell and Demie Johnson), Oct. 15, 2026. https://www.wftv.com/news/local/orlando-man-missing-since-1997-identified-victim-found-sanford-woods/OXMAGITHSVG27FPLMHZF26YZ7I/
2. “Human remains found nearly 30 years ago identified as missing Wisconsin man,” FOX 35 Orlando (Alexus Cleavenger), Oct. 15, 2026. https://fox35orlando.com/news/human-remains-found-nearly-30-years-ago-identified-missing-wisconsin-man

Facts current as of Oct. 19, 2026.