Amsterdam Police: 6 missing person cases may help ID unknown injured English speaker

Saturday, 22 August 2026 - 08:15

After receiving hundreds of tips about Lucky, an unidentified man who has been receiving care in Amsterdam since 2023, the police are now investigating six missing-person cases “with priority,” a police spokesperson told AT5. “From all those tips, six people have emerged who could be Lucky.”

Lucky collapsed on the street in Amsterdam on May 10, 2023. He suffered from aphasia as a result of a brain hemorrhage or stroke, which prevents him from communicating beyond the English words "definitely" and "nonsense." He was also not in possession of any identifying documents.

The police tried to identify the man and found that he had ties to the Buddhist community based around the Middenweg in Amsterdam-Oost, the Waterlooplein market, and he frequented a Soupenzo eatery on Jodenbreestraat. But without concrete information about his identity, even after comparing his DNA to missing persons databases, they turned to the public for help. The Amsterdam police shared a video this week, hoping that someone may recognize the man.

The police quickly received hundreds of tips and investigated every one. They have narrowed them down to six missing persons who could be Lucky. One of the names on the list is John Russel Kenny, a Canadian man who disappeared from Vancouver in 1993. Amateur sleuth Anton van Straten noticed a remarkable resemblance between Kenny and Lucky.

The police spokesperson would not say anything about the other five names on the list, primarily because they do not want to give the families of these missing people false hope. “We must first investigate everything very thoroughly,” the police spokesperson told AT5.