Lake Mead Barrel Victim Identified as Edward Jackson

Nevada investigators identified the man whose remains were found in a corroded barrel at Lake Mead in May 2022 as Edward “Buddy” Lelburian Jackson, an Arkansas native, using DNA and forensic genealogy. Jackson was likely in his mid-to-late 50s and was killed by a gunshot to the head, probably in the late 1970s or early 1980s; drought-driven falling water levels exposed the barrel. Relatives said he traveled widely and last saw him in Arkansas in the early 1980s, and investigators have found no known connection between him and Las Vegas. Police say they have no evidence the killing was organized-crime-related. The case remains an open homicide, and authorities are seeking information about Jackson’s travels, associates and death.