Massachusetts authorities identify remains of Cranston man who disappeared in 1981

FAIRHAVEN, Mass. (WLNE) — The remains of a Cranston man who disappeared nearly 40 years ago have been identified as part of Bristol County District Attorney Tomas Quinn’s Unidentified Bodies Project.

On April 8, 1985, a driver stopped in the breakdown lane on Interstate 195 in Fairhaven, just beyond the Mattapoisett town line.

The driver looked to the off shoulder of the road, and in the brush about 45 feet from the roadway, saw a human skeleton.

Investigators secured the scene and recovered the remains, along with other physical evidence, including a pair of shoes that were manufactured in 1981.

Anything related to the identity of the body was not found, but police quickly gathered evidence of a homicide.

The remains were sent to the FBI lab in Washington, D.C.

The lab found that the body was a Caucasian man, about 5 feet, 9 inches tall, who had died within a few years before the remains were discovered.

An image of an early attempt to identify human remains found in Fairhaven in 1981. (Bristol County District Attorney’s Office)

A forensic analysis showed evidence of inflicted trauma, and it was determined that the man had been killed.

Investigators tried to use his dental records to compare them to other missing persons cases, but attempts were not successful.

They released information to the local media seeking help from the public, but those efforts also didn’t work.

In a final attempt, investigators made a facial reconstruction of the skull to try and recreate the man’s appearance, and shared the portrait with the media.

Without any other options, the case then went untouched for almost 40 years.

The remains were finally identified after the Bristol District Attorney’s Office and Massachusetts State Police Unresolved Unit got the assistance of Othram, a private laboratory in Texas, and the FBI’s Investigative Genetic Genealogy Team.

Investigators made a genetic profile from DNA evidence and used forensic genetic genealogy to compare the profile to thousands of other DNA profiles and create a family tree.

Investigators said the remains of a body found in Fairhaven in 1981 belong to 27-year-old Keith Olson of Cranston. (Bristol County District Attorney’s Office)

The remains were positively identified as Keith Olson, of Cranston.

Olson was last seen in April of 1981.

He was born and raised in Rhode Island. He was 27.

Investigators said Olson was dating a woman at the time of his disappearance.

Although the relationship was brief, it created friction with her ex-boyfriend — a North Providence man named John Broccoli, also known as Michael Corleone.

Investigators said he made comments to the woman that implied he may have been involved in the Olson case. He died in 2019 at the age of 63.

Investigators believe at least two people are responsible for Olson’s disappearance and murder.

Anyone with information is asked to contact Det. Lt. AnnMarie Robertson at 855-627-6583.