Manitoba man identified as cold case murder victim in Florida 26 years later

A Manitoba man has been found to be the victim of a 26-year-old homicide cold case in Florida.

The Flagler County Sheriff’s Office in Florida has identified a male homicide victim who had been nameless for decades.

With the help of a private forensic genetic genealogy company, investigators have identified the victim as Robert Bruce McPhail, originally from the Kenora/Winnipeg region.

McPhail was found on September 10, 1997, floating in an intercoastal waterway in the northeast part of Florida.

When the body was recovered, investigators discovered that McPhail had been bound, shot, and stabbed multiple times before being dumped in the water.

There are no known photos of McPhail, however, a re-creation of his face was sculpted in 1997.

Investigators say McPhail was 58 years old at the time of his death, and had moved to Florida in the 1990s. They don’t know a lot about the victim, only that he had a passion for boats. Police are asking anyone with any information about McPhail to come forward.

This is a developing story, more to come.