Mystery man ‘Lucky’ found in Amsterdam is not missing person from B.C.: police

The mystery surrounding the unidentified man known as "Lucky," found collapsed in Amsterdam in May 2023, has deepened as police definitively ruled out a connection to a missing person from Vancouver. Vancouver police had been investigating whether "Lucky" could be John Russell Kenny, who disappeared in 1994.

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This lead was investigated together with the Canadian police, and it has now been definitively established that Lucky and Mr. Kenny are not the same person.

Amsterdam police spokesperson Marijke Stor confirmed the findings on Saturday. "This lead was investigated together with the Canadian police, and it has now been definitively established that Lucky and Mr. Kenny are not the same person," Stor stated. Vancouver police Constable Megan Lui corroborated this in an email, confirming that fingerprint analysis showed no match between the two men.

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We don’t really know how much he understands and we have tried in various ways, but it’s not really possible in communication with him to find out who he really is.

Meanwhile, Amsterdam police are actively pursuing new avenues to identify "Lucky," who suffers from aphasia and has no identification. Since releasing a video appeal a week ago, they have received over 500 tips. These tips have provided several "specific names of people," leading detectives to investigate at least nine new leads. While Vancouver police are no longer involved in these specific leads, Amsterdam authorities continue their efforts, driven by a desire to connect the man with his past and potential relatives.

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We want to not only find out who he is, but also if there are any, for example, relatives who still love him and he could get in contact with, because he is right now in a nursing facility where they are taking, of course, good care of him. But he spends a lot of his time alone and we think it would be very nice for him if he. . . could be able to talk to someone he knows.

"Lucky" was found with no personal identification, hindering efforts to determine his identity. The case is classified as a "social investigation," with police aiming to identify him to potentially reunite him with loved ones. He is currently in a nursing facility, but police believe it would be beneficial for him to connect with someone he knows. There is a prevailing theory that he may be from Canada or the U.S., supported by information from a local restaurant where some patrons knew him as "Chris the Canadian" and noted he spoke with an "American or Canadian accent."

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The people told us that he always spoke with what they called an American or a Canadian accent. So the theory that he might be from America or Canada, that’s a theory we think could be really possible.