CHAUTAUQUA COUNTY (WKBW) — A national database of missing and unidentified people called NamUs played a key role in the investigation of suspected serial killer Richard Fox, who was charged this week with a third murder.
The database has become an essential tool for law enforcement and advocates working to identify remains and reunite families with missing loved ones. However, experts say outdated entries and incomplete information sometimes complicate investigations.
Merry Williams-Diers, founder of the Western New York Missing and Unidentified Persons Network, relies on NamUs often and has helped families get their missing loved ones added to the database. Part of the database is open to the public, but she has noticed that sometimes the entries aren't up to date.
"Going through the years that [Richard Fox] wasn't in prison and who other potential victims are is very hard to do when there's missing people that aren't really missing mixed in," Williams-Diers said.
WATCH: National database helps solve missing person cases, but gaps remain
Currently, 86 people are listed as missing from Erie County in the database.
Williams-Diers pointed to another recently solved missing person case — that of Cynthia Salter in Buffalo, whose remains were identified earlier this month, 30 years after she was reported missing.
"We were looking at Cynthia Salter back in July of 2024 and we were already convinced that Jane Doe and Cynthia were one and the same based on what was available to just us as the general public," Williams-Diers said.
"That's what we always hope for, is for the missing to be found or for the unidentified to have their names back. But that's still not happening as quickly as maybe it should or we would like it to," she said.
Lieutenant Alex Nutt, who heads the investigation division of the Chautauqua County Sheriff's unit, became familiar with NamUs while at a law enforcement conference. Coincidentally, the conference was happening at the same time the remains of two of Richard Fox's victims were found off a trail in Chautauqua County in September 2021.
"After the presenter was done, I went and approached her and said, 'Hey, I literally just learned about this incident in my county,'" Nutt said.
He says NamUs is often a treasure trove of information for investigators working to identify remains.
"I researched, all of us researched, a lot of the missing people in the case where you have unidentified remains. Researching potential candidates for that is really important and if you look up a NamUs profile and there's nothing there, that's something that can be frustrating," Nutt said.
The lieutenant said that the more information that's added to NamUs, the more helpful it can be.
"It's a really helpful tool," Nutt said.
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