Florida Detectives Investigate 8 Skeletons [Archive] - Websleuths Crime Sleuthing Community

suzannec4444

03-25-2007, 12:25 PM

Hi

Does anyone know more about this or can find out more and post it here or please post it here when you do find out more.I am very interested in this.

suzanne

Remains of 8 bodies found
Fort Myers police seek clues in deaths

By ED JOHNSON
ejohnson@news-press.com
Originally posted on March 24, 2007

The skeletal remains of eight people were found Friday in a wooded area about 25 feet from an unpaved section of Arcadia Street in east Fort Myers.

Police are handling the deaths as homicides unless they find evidence to the contrary, Lt. Brian Phillips said.

The location was kept under police guard Friday night, and investigators are expected to continue their investigation today, police spokeswoman Shelly Flynn said.

Investigators estimate the bodies have been in the woods for several years, police said.

No skin or clothing was left on the remains, Phillips said.

No trauma was evident, he said.

Police called in Heather Walsh-Haney, a forensic anthropologist from Florida Gulf Coast University, to help with the investigation.

http://www.news-press.com/apps/pbcs.dll/ar.../703240525/1075 (http://www.news-press.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070324/NEWS0110/703240525/1075)

suzannec4444

03-25-2007, 12:51 PM

BonitaNews.com
Bonita Daily News | The BannerE-mail story | Printer-friendly | Discuss story E-mail editor | iPod friendly | Get on your phone A day of combing Fort Myers woods turns up no more skeletons
By Tom Hanson (Contact)

Sunday, March 25, 2007

Off a sandy, dusty road in Fort Myers, more than 50 law enforcement officials and volunteers searched a heavily wooded 10-acre parcel for more bones and some answers.

A day after finding eight human skulls and skeletal remains, nothing more turned up.

Authorities from the Fort Myers police department, Lee County Sheriff’s Office, Cape Coral police department, the Florida Department of Law Enforcement and faculty from Florida Gulf Coast University sifted through the desolate area off Arcadia Street and Canal Street today.

The delivery of a dozen pizzas by an officer in an unmarked car signaled the end of the grueling grid-search.

“It’s been a painstaking venture. It’s hot out here. It’s rough work and it’s not too environmentally friendly back there,” Fort Myers police Lt. Brian Phillips said. “This investigation has basically turned into an archaeological dig now.”

http://www.bonitanews.com/news/2007/mar/25/day_combing_fort_myers_woods_turns_no_more_skeleto/?local_news (http://www.bonitanews.com/news/2007/mar/25/day_combing_fort_myers_woods_turns_no_more_skeleto/?local_news)

lymom3

03-25-2007, 01:39 PM

I thought of you immediately when I saw this story. Will keep my eyes open for any further information.

suzannec4444

03-25-2007, 01:42 PM

Hi
Thankyou so much.Do you have links to a map that shows the street areas mentioned in the articles.

suzanne

Beyond Belief

03-25-2007, 10:40 PM

i heard through the grapevine that they are from a funeral home, or crematorium. Might be just rumour.

suzannec4444

03-26-2007, 10:09 AM

Hi
I heard that too.I don't think they are from the funeral home.

suzanne

LisainWV

03-26-2007, 10:40 AM

i heard through the grapevine that they are from a funeral home, or crematorium. Might be just rumour.

The articles I read mentioned the possibility that they were from a funeral home.

I think it's entirely possible. However, there are so many people missing and so many sickos out there - could be a dump site for a serial killer.

suzannec4444

03-26-2007, 11:18 AM

Hi
I agree with you.I thought the same thing.The Green River killer clumped his victims together in different places.Leonard Lake (serial killer in California in 1984)had his victims buried on his property.Bobby Joe Long was a serial killer in 1984 in Tampa,Florida.I'm curious when the victims died and were they buried.

suzanne

lymom3

03-26-2007, 11:35 AM

I know you can use google maps to get a good overhead image. Here's screen capture of the area from another map site.

http://i129.photobucket.com/albums/p204/lymom3/ScreenHunter_01Mar.gif

suzannec4444

03-29-2007, 10:38 AM

Hi
Thankyou so much.

suzanne

poppypetals

03-29-2007, 01:08 PM

http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/F/FL_HUMAN_REMAINS_FLOL-?SITE=FLPEJ&SECTION=HOME&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT

audrey77

03-29-2007, 02:40 PM

There's an update: http://www.orlandosentinel.com/news/local/state/orl-bk-skeltons032907,0,6528495.story?coll=orl-home-headlines

Basically, the Forensic Anthropologist is still processing the scene. Authorities are fearing the worst. They said that the site is perfect for a serial killer (see last paragraph).

Dark Knight

03-30-2007, 01:06 AM

Since this hasn't been classified as a crime or missing persons, I am posting it in here until then:

(AP)Detectives are weighing several theories after the discovery of eight human skeletons in a remote wooded area. The remains might have been abandoned by a shady crematorium or come from an old cemetery. But authorities are most concerned about a possible serial killer.

The investigation into the bones has taken on the look of a "CSI"-style television mystery. A forensic anthropologist is studying the remains and reconstructing them like puzzle pieces. A botanist and an entomologist will examine plants and insects at the site to determine how long the skeletons have been there.

"If it was a body dump by a funeral home, they probably would have dumped them all in one place, and these are not on top of each other. They're spread around," said Karen Cooper, supervisor of the Florida Department of Law Enforcement's Fort Myers crime lab. "I think we're more likely dealing with a serial killer or something of that nature."

The skeletons were found down a dirt road in a brush-covered area just a few miles from downtown Fort Myers. The first was found March 23 by a surveyor checking the industrial site for potential development. Seven others were soon discovered in a 200-yard radius.

No clothing or personal items were found, and no flesh remained on the bones, which were believed to be from adults.

http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2007/03/29/ap/national/main2625240.shtml (http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2007/03/29/ap/national/main2625240.shtml)

RiverRat

03-31-2007, 12:35 AM

It would not surprise me if the last of Conahan's victims have already been found. And yes - he left bodies scattered left and right in the woods.....still spooks me to this day to even drive by any of the areas. Fortunately - we had the Very Best on his tracks and no longer have to deal with that Freak.

suzannec4444

04-19-2007, 10:32 AM

Hi
Did they find out any more recently on this?

suzanne

mrsjonnob

04-19-2007, 11:22 AM

ewwwwww

RiverRat

04-19-2007, 12:25 PM

Last I heard, the site was still undergoing the excavation process. I will keep an ear out on this!

suzannec4444

04-20-2007, 11:12 AM

Hi
Thankyou.I am very interested in this.

suzanne

scandi

04-20-2007, 11:19 AM

How niced to see our RiverRat! <<wavy guy>>,

About 20 years ago on the mid Oregon Coast they started finding bodies like this. It was awful because the mortician had been stowing the bodies elsewhere than in their respective graves. People had no idea where their loved ones bodies were.

It did get straightened out and the man was found guilty, although I don't remember a trial. I'll have to research that!

Scandi

suzannec4444

04-23-2007, 09:53 AM

Hi
Yes,please let me know if anyone finds out any more on this ok?

suzanne

suzannec4444

04-23-2007, 10:22 AM

Hi
I am bumping this up ok?I am just trying to figure out where they moved this too.I'm sorry.

suzanne

Amraann

04-23-2007, 10:39 AM

I have not heard any updates about this and I live in Florida.

Maybe they are just keeping it tight lipped so they can catch the killer?

kawika

04-23-2007, 02:50 PM

The only update I can find is now two+ weeks old. Even given that this is a slow process with very little information to put out there, I agree the authorities seem to be keeping whatever they are thinking to themselves.

Focus on remains shifts
Probe into discovery of bones heads to lab

By Ed Johnson
ejohnson@news-press.com
Originally posted on April 07, 2007

The investigation into the deaths of eight people whose skeletons were found in Fort Myers now shifts to the laboratory. Forensic pathologists will try to tell how they died, and a forensic anthropologist will try to reveal who they were.

http://www.news-press.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=20070407/NEWS0110/704070464/1075

My link doesn't seem to want to work, but the story is there on their site *somewhere*. Sorry.

suzannec4444

04-26-2007, 10:22 AM

hi
I was told it appears in the preliminary investigation that all of the skeletal remains they found are men. I was very surprised about that.I do not know how long they had been out there.I assume they are figuring this all out now.

suzanne

TGIRecovered

04-26-2007, 11:53 AM

Anyone know how long it takes to run DNA profiles against DNA on file from missing persons?
If I had a missing relative I would want to have my DNA on file so they could compare with any unidentified remains.
I wonder how much it costs to do that and if LE won't pay for it when a loved one is missing, can a relative pay for it themselves and provide LE with results?
It would seem to me that LE would at least be able to provide an approximate age of the victims at the time of their death and about how long they have been dead.
I also wonder if LE is doing any surveilance at the dump site.

Susan

RiverRat

04-28-2007, 01:52 PM

Hearing that the remains are all male does make it hard to write off a possible Daniel Connahan connection. I really kind of hope that it is due to him instead of having a different mass murderer around.

reportertype

04-28-2007, 02:01 PM

I'm with RR on this one! I've been keeping my eyes open as I live in the area and haven't heard a thing.

christine2448

05-30-2007, 04:35 PM

I just got this email from another missing group I work with.

FYI

May 29, 2007

The skeletal remains found off Arcadia Street in Fort Myers on March 23 were all from adults, police said. How they died is still an open question.

That’s the gist of a preliminary report the Lee County medical examiner has given detectives, said Maureen Buice, a police department spokeswoman.

The preliminary report confirms police suspicions that eight bodies were dumped at the once deserted woodline, Buice said.

A forensic anthropologist’s examination of the remains has matched eight skulls with eight nearly complete skeletons, she added.

The more compelling question of whether they died as a result of criminal homicide is pending.

Bones present a particularly tough mystery both police and the medical examiner concedes.

Absent visible trauma, such as a crushed skull, a bullet hole or bone nicks consistent with a stabbing, its hard for a medical examiner to tell how the person died, police said.

The painstaking digging and sifting where the bones were found also failed to suggest how the people died, or if they even died where they were found, detectives said.

That evidence search, similar to an archaeolgical dig, was supervised by Heather Walsh Haney, a forensic anthroplogist at Florida Gulf Coast University.

For more than a week crime scene technicians from the Fort Myers police, Lee County sheriff’s Office and the Florida Department of Law Enforcement dug and sifted. Hoping to find some artifact, like a spent bullet, that would hint at a cause of death, Walsh-Haney said.

Police have not released details of the medical examiner’s report, which Buice cautioned is “very preliminary.”

“We’re still reviewing it and there is still a lot of investigation going on,” she added. “We have some preliminary results now, but all of that is subject to change as more testing and investigation is completed.”

Privately, investigators hope definitive answers will replace the conflicting theories they are now grappling with.

Investigators have to treat the remains as homicide victims until they can prove otherwise, police Lt. Brian Phillips said. Otherwise, what could be valuable evidence could be improperly gathered and inadmissable in a later court proceeding, he added.

“It has all the indications of a dump site,” said Charlie Mesloh, an assistant professor of criminal justice at Florida Gulf Coast University and a former police officer. “But a dump site doesn’t mean a murder. It could be a serial killer’s drop spot or somewhere where someone, like a funeral director, just improperly disposed of remains.”

Dinah Johnson

Government Analyst

Florida Department of Law Enforcement

MissieMt

05-30-2007, 04:49 PM

unbelievable! 8 people! Not a one of them with a name, so very sad. The only way I can think of 8 people missing going unnoticed is if it was just improper disposal from a crematorium or something.

christine2448

05-30-2007, 04:57 PM

unbelievable! 8 people! Not a one of them with a name, so very sad. The only way I can think of 8 people missing going unnoticed is if it was just improper disposal from a crematorium or something.

We had that happen here in Georgia, the Tri State Crematory case, it was horrible:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tri-State_Crematory

The Tri-State Crematory was the subject of a national incident in the United States in the early 2000s leading to litigation and criminal prosecution, in which over three hundred bodies that had been consigned to a crematorium for proper disposal were never cremated but instead were dumped on the crematorium's site.

Rosco

05-30-2007, 06:33 PM

Checkin on this - if anything has been confirmed where the 8 male bodies came from.

Rosco

kaylenbabysims

06-08-2007, 01:36 PM

http://www.news-press.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070608/NEWS01/70608016/1075

I'm not sure if you'll have to input information or not to view it??

But it does have some information :)

RiverRat

06-08-2007, 06:22 PM

"The remains were all white males between the ages of 18 and 49 years old, said Heathec anthropologist who examined the remains.

"We do not believe there is any immediate danger to the community, Detective Sgt. Jennifer Soto said."

"Soto said police believe “this was all past related activity” that presented no danger to the public."

RR here - Now that makes it even harder to rule out Daniel Conahan.

reportertype

06-08-2007, 06:52 PM

We were told that some of the remains appeared to have been transients or drifters based on their dentals.

hoppyfrog

06-09-2007, 12:24 AM

http://www.news-press.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070608/NEWS01/70608016/1075

I'm not sure if you'll have to input information or not to view it??

But it does have some information :)

Did not have to enter and info to view it.

Here are the descriptions of the remains. The fact that the remains are all from white males ages 18-49 suggests to me that this is NOT a dump site from a morgue, but the result of criminal activity.

POLICE RELEASE DESCRIPTIONS
As Fort Myers police try to identify the victims whose remains were found in a wooded area off Arcadia Street on March 23, they’re hoping the information gathered by a forensic anthropologist and forensic dentist will be a help.

The remains are all those of white men between the ages of 18 and 49, said Heather Walsh-Haney, a forensic anthropologist from Florida Gulf Coast University, who police called into the case.

Here’s descriptors that family members might recognize:

Individual #1
Age: Late 20’s to early 40’s, height 5 feet2 inches to 5 feet 7 inches tall, in life he had sustained injuries to his legs, forearm and chest. He has three wisdom teeth and has not had current dental care. He could have lived a transient lifestyle.

Individual #2
Age: 20’s to 30’s, height 5 feet 6inches to six feet tall. This person had healed fractures to his right fibula, nose and collarbone. He does not have wisdom teeth and he may have had braces.

Individual #3
Age: 20’s to 30’s, height 5 feet seven inches to 6 feet 3 inches, very good dental care with all four wisdom teeth.

Individual #4

Age: 20’s to 30’s, height 5 feet 5 inches to 5 feet 11 inches tall, with some dental fillings and all four wisdom teeth intact.

Individual #5
Age: 18 to early 20’s, height 5 feet 10 inches to 6 feet four inches tall, excellent dental care. One of this individual’s wisdom teeth were removed. The other three remain.

Individual #6

Age: late 20’s to early 40’s, height 5 feet 5 inches to 5 feet 11 inches tall. This individual could have complained of hip or back problems. All four wisdom teeth are present and there are dental fillings in other teeth.

Individual #7

White male, possibly Hispanic, age 20’s to 30’s, height 5 feet 11 inches to 6 feet 3 inches. This individual still has all four wisdom teeth. He fractured his right wrist in life.

Individual #8

Age: 20’s to 30’s, height 5 feet six inches to 6 feet tall, with god dental work andall four wisdom teeth intact. He might have been an athlete, weight lifter, or had a job that required heavy lifting.

An examination of previous x-rays of injuries and dental charts could identify the remains, police said.

Anyone with information can call police at 1-877-667-1296, or 239-339-4008. Messages can also be sent to www.tipline@fmpolice.com (http://www.tipline@fmpolice.com)

Hoppy

txsvicki

06-09-2007, 02:52 AM

Would individual #7 have been a more recent body since they were able to identify or test dna to determine race?

RiverRat

06-09-2007, 09:19 AM

We were told that some of the remains appeared to have been transients or drifters based on their dentals.

Conahan preyed on men that no one would notice missing, but I wouldn't be surprised if the bodies came from a funeral home that didn't want bother with "formalities."

AmandaBrown23

06-09-2007, 07:33 PM

Just a quick thought, if it was a funeral home doing this, what are the chances all eight would be male and not one single female. I was just thinking that if that was the case surely there would be at least one right?

reportertype

06-09-2007, 10:27 PM

Hmm, no females is a good point. Could just be a coincidence. I know there are some crematoriums around and I think -- could be remembering this wrong -- that under Fla. law crematoriums aren't supposed to have any services. I wonder if they were disposed of by some place like that? I agree with RR that's a possibility.

I also think Conahan, or someone like him, is a strong possibility as well. I haven't read too much on him. All I know is he preyed on men, including transient types and trolled for men frequently. I know they suspect he has many more victims than he was connected to.

Hard to say. I'll be interested to find out more about these remains, especially if any are ID'd.

Masterj

06-09-2007, 11:27 PM

I also think Conahan, or someone like him, is a strong possibility as well. I haven't read too much on him. All I know is he preyed on men, including transient types and trolled for men frequently. I know they suspect he has many more victims than he was connected to.

Hard to say. I'll be interested to find out more about these remains, especially if any are ID'd.

He is also my guess for the reasons you listed above. I haven't read about him in a little while, but from what I remember he had a variety of dumping grounds and is suspected to have killed many more than they were able to prove. I am going to go to crimelibrary and refresh my memory.

MeoW333

06-10-2007, 08:48 PM

If it were a funeral home just dumping victims, they most likely would have also been alot older in age and different sexes.
Sounds like a serial killer's dumping grounds. Maybe he started off with a transient to see if he could get away with it and then graduated.
Aside from the one, the others seem to have had kept up with dental work. I wonder if a lot of men during the time range were reported missing from Florida?
How tall and big is Conahan? All these men were of average to taller height. I'm thinking if it was Conahan he either would overpower them or find away to make them cooperative. If we can narrow it down to any fitting a missing description maybe someone saw him with one of the men; if not maybe rule him out..

RiverRat

06-15-2007, 09:00 AM

Conahan background:

http://www.courttv.com/onair/shows/mugshots/indepth/hogtrail.html

RiverRat

06-17-2007, 12:14 PM

Interesting tid-bit time!

While under surveillance during the original investigation, Conahan did drive to the location where the 8 skeletons were found this year.

Now I must :silenced:

hoppyfrog

06-17-2007, 07:26 PM

Interesting tid-bit time!

While under surveillance during the original investigation, Conahan did drive to the location where the 8 skeletons were found this year.

Now I must :silenced:

Interesting. Source?

Hoppy

RiverRat

06-18-2007, 07:22 AM

Interesting. Source?

Hoppy

A great one.

RiverRat

06-18-2007, 07:24 AM

http://www.sun-herald.com/Newsstory.cfm?pubdate=061807&story=tp2ch6.htm&folder=NewsArchive2

All eight of the skeletons found March 23 in Lee County were white, adult males whose bodies were nude, just like the five victims detectives believe were murdered in the mid-1990s by convicted Charlotte County serial killer Daniel O. Conahan Jr.

The eight Lee County skeletons appeared to have been placed, not buried -- a detail consistent with Conahan's victims, whose bodies were laid out on their backs with their arms out to their sides as if in a "presentation," as one state criminal profiler had concluded.

None of the eight skeletons showed obvious signs of homicidal trauma, such as bullet wounds -- just like Conahan's Charlotte victims, who were believed to have been strangled.

And all eight were found in a wooded, undeveloped area of Fort Myers -- within less than a mile of where at least one of Conahan's victims escaped in 1994, according to court records.

hoppyfrog

06-19-2007, 12:31 AM

A great one.

Clearly.:)

And why, if whatshisname visited that location while LE was watching, why didn't LE more closely examine the site at that time?

Hoppy

RiverRat

06-19-2007, 06:13 PM

That I do not know - just trying to help out here with what little true facts that I can.

SewingDeb

08-12-2007, 10:41 PM

Identificiation the key
Most frustrating for police is that they have not yet been able to identify any of the eight victims. Investigators believe once they learn the name of just one person the case will accelerate.

"We've got to figure out who these people were before we can move forward," said Soto. "Were they all connected? Did these eight people know each other, or were they simply random people who had no interlinkings?"

At the medical examiner's office, Walsh-Haney, the forensic anthropologist, analyzed the skeletal remains in order to come up with the sex and estimated ages of the victims.

From the bones, experts are now gathering DNA samples, while other specialists are measuring the skulls in order to build models that attempt to replicate the victims' faces.

"What that first identification will do for us in terms of the investigation is give us a name," Walsh-Haney said. "With that name come family members and friends who may have known where this individual was when he was last seen."

Police are asking the public for help, and are urging anyone with a missing relative who matches the descriptions and time frame of the case to contact them. They may be asked to give a cheek DNA swab.

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/20236967/

SewingDeb

09-06-2007, 11:19 PM

You have to scroll down to see this little blurb on the page title Serial Killer News Briefs (Crime Library):

Thursday, August 23, 2007

FORT MYERS, FL — The producers of America's Most Wanted' have paid a forensic sculptor $20,000 to reconstruct the faces of eight human skeletons found in a wooded lot last April. Investigators are now asking a Florida court for permission to allow segments of the reconstruction process filmed for the weekly television show. Unlike most states, Florida does not allow autopsy photographs or video and audio recordings to be released without the consent of the victim's family member. In this case, all of the victims are unidentified. A ruling is still pending.

http://www.crimelibrary.com/news/original/0807/2401_serial_killer_news2.html

Reannan

09-06-2007, 11:46 PM

Well, my goodness! I would certainly think that the state of Florida would be very interested in finding out who these people are! They should have a vested interest in discovering whether or not a serial killer has been operating carte blance in the area! If the state denies the request to allow AMW to publicize the sculptures, something is seriously wrong. :twocents:

SewingDeb

09-07-2007, 12:10 AM

AmandaBrown23

09-07-2007, 12:11 AM

I was thinking about this today, such a shame 8 people that can finally be put to rest.

ShowerSinger

11-06-2007, 05:46 PM

More info, AMW now involved

www.winknews.com/news/local/11041801.html

Soonerbabie

11-06-2007, 08:00 PM

Someone said that another guy escaped from a miile away from there.. where was he from?

Teresa Larson

11-06-2007, 11:45 PM

I think this could be the work of a serial killer If 8 people came up missing all at one time we would remember that happening for sure. The bad thing is if that is truly the case it might be much harder to identify them :-(

kaylenbabysims

11-20-2007, 09:52 PM

2 Men identified!!

http://www.news-press.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20071120/NEWS0110/71120054/1075

RiverRat

11-21-2007, 09:16 AM

Two from Charlotte County just further drives home the fact that Daniel Conahan has more more explaining to do!

RiverRat

11-21-2007, 09:55 AM

http://www.heraldtribune.com/article/20071121/NEWS/711210315/1264/NEWS0103

"News reports this year said detectives had not ruled out the possibility that the eight people were victims of Daniel Conahan.

Conahan was sentenced to death in 1999 for strangling a drifter whose body was left in the woods in Charlotte County.

Conahan, who is on death row, is a suspect in at least five other unsolved slayings."

shwa

11-21-2007, 01:00 PM

http://tinyurl.com/2gnswx

Two men ID'd among eight bodies found in March in Ft. Myers Fl.

shwa

11-21-2007, 01:06 PM

http://tinyurl.com/yu948h

Pic of Erik Kohler.

Filly

11-21-2007, 01:17 PM

Hopefully this will be instrumental in helping LE find out who did this.

RiverRat

11-21-2007, 01:18 PM

Related thread:

http://websleuths.com/forums/showthread.php?t=48160

AmandaBrown23

11-21-2007, 01:23 PM

Im really glad they found who two of them are.

hoppyfrog

11-21-2007, 01:44 PM

http://www.news-press.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20071120/NEWS0110/71120054/1075

11-20-07

Fort Myers police have confirmed the identity of two individuals whose remains were found in March, along with the remains of six others, off Arcadia Road.

The two individuals are Erik D. Kohler, born June 23, 1974, and John C. Blevins, born Nov. 19, 1969. They were identified by the University of North Texas Human Identification Center, which matched two DNA samples from their bones with DNA samples submitted by their family members.

more at link

RiverRat

11-22-2007, 07:56 AM

http://www.sun-herald.com/CHNewsstory.cfm?pubdate=112207&story=ch9.htm&folder=NewsArchive2

Conahan was convicted in 1999 of the murder of one Charlotte Harbor transient, 21-year-old Richard Montgomery, according to court records. He was also suspected of several other murders of young men whose remains were found in wooded areas of Charlotte County between 1994-96.

A Florida Department of Law Enforcement criminal profiler had theorized all those victims were killed by a "sexual sadist" -- and Conahan's methods matched that profile.

Fort Myers Police Sgt. Jennifer Soto said this week she's not focusing on any particular suspect in connection to the skeletons case. First, detectives are working to retrace the last steps of the two men whose skeletons have been identified to date.

BeavisMom62

11-24-2007, 07:17 PM

I wonder why Erik Kohler was last seen in 1995 but not reported missing until 1999!!!! Pretty sad :confused:

MeoW333

11-28-2007, 12:10 AM

Teresa Larson

11-28-2007, 12:25 AM

This is why i don't think they should initially sentence serial killers to death. Give them life; most of the time there are other victims that they didn't disclose. So many unidentified people would be identified if more of the SK's were talking.

I understand what you are saying however who is going to pay to keep all of these people in the prisons? They are over crowed now. Where would they put them?? It costs a lot to keep prisoners in jail.

Angel4Alpha

12-13-2007, 01:45 AM

Do you think this might be one of them?

http://www.doenetwork.org/cases/1389dmfl.html he went missing in 1995 ans had broken wrists in his life and hes said to be 6'0 matches a description from page 2 of one of the unidentifieds:

Individual #7

White male, possibly Hispanic, age 20’s to 30’s, height 5 feet 11 inches to 6 feet 3 inches. This individual still has all four wisdom teeth. He fractured his right wrist in life.

marysawol

12-13-2007, 01:54 AM

Angel4Alpha, I think you're on to something there.

hoppyfrog

12-17-2007, 11:16 PM

http://www.heraldtribune.com/article/20071122/NEWS/711220425

22 Nov 07

Lost son 'died a horrible death'

Carol Broderick did not want to answer any more questions.

The announcement that her son's remains were among the eight skeletons found in Fort Myers last March has led to a deluge of media attention, with television vans parked outside her Port Charlotte house and reporters asking questions about her son, Erik Cohler, who had been missing for more than a decade.

"There is no closure," she said Wednesday, declining to answer questions. "Not when you know he died a horrible death."

much much more at link

Teresa Larson

12-18-2007, 03:58 AM

Angel4Alpha

12-31-2007, 05:36 PM

I think many people dont report adults missing especially when it comes to adult children for some time - particularly if there has been friction in the home prior to their leaving or if the person is very independant and it seems to happen more often with men missing than women.

joanofarc

01-16-2008, 06:51 PM

They were discovered last March, when a surveyor inspecting the often-swampy area for potential land development thought he saw human remains sticking out of the ground.
Police were called to the scene, and within a single day they uncovered the remains of eight people believed to have ranged from 18 to 49 years old when they died.

Click here for photos. (http://www.foxnews.com/photoessay/0,4644,3123,00.html)

The victims’ bodies were clustered closely together, within 1 acre of another, and were not buried, according to Fort Myers Police Detective Barry Lewis, who is leading the investigation. He said the bodies went undiscovered because they were covered over the years with falling leaves and other natural debris. "These were basically surface-type deposits," Lewis said.
Was this the work of a serial killer? Police don't know, and they have few clues to go on, other than a wooded area full of human bones. No witnesses have come forward and they have no strong suspects.
/**/
Investigators still have no indication of how the victims were killed. There were no signs of trauma to the eight skulls. There were no bullet holes, either.
What they do know is that the killings are by far the biggest crime to hit Fort Myers.

Hoping to gain a foothold into solving this mystery, Fort Myers police called on a well-known forensic artist named Sharon Long to use the skulls to "rebuild" the faces of the unidentified victims.

http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,323245,00.html

SewingDeb

01-18-2008, 12:30 PM

Case Of 8 Skeletons Now Officially Ruled Homicides
Detectives have so far identified two of the victims through DNA.

Erik D. Cohler, 21, of Port Charlotte, and John C. Blevins, 38, of Fort Myers, were identified by comparing DNA from the bones to DNA from their relatives, said Fort Myers police Detective Sgt. Jennifer Soto.

Authorities know precious little about the remaining skeletons, other than they were white men between the ages of 18 and 49 and died as far back as 1980.

http://www.wftv.com/news/15083388/detail.html

SewingDeb

01-18-2008, 12:38 PM

In the article I linked, they say this case will be featured Saturday on AMW. Also, the skulls were sent for reconstruction. I wish they had included a picture of those.

imthemom

01-18-2008, 01:07 PM

In the article I linked, they say this case will be featured Saturday on AMW. Also, the skulls were sent for reconstruction. I wish they had included a picture of those.

Wow, so possibly a serial killers dumping site that killed young men. Kind of a Jeffry Dahmer. Scary.

SewingDeb

01-18-2008, 01:11 PM

It is scary. The families of 50 missing men sent DNA to be tested against the skeletons but none matched.

JinxieJada

01-18-2008, 02:47 PM

In the article I linked, they say this case will be featured Saturday on AMW. Also, the skulls were sent for reconstruction. I wish they had included a picture of those.

Photo essay with facial reconstructions

http://www.foxnews.com/photoessay/0,4644,3123,00.html

I came across this while searching for possible other victims of GMH. Hope it's what you were looking for!

SewingDeb

01-18-2008, 04:19 PM

Jinxie, yes! That's perfect. Maybe someone, somewhere, will recognize them. Thank you so much for posting that link.

Bobbisangel

01-19-2008, 04:57 AM

It has to be a serial killer for that many men to be found in one place and for that many men to have disappeared between 1993-1995. Is the guy that was arrested still alive and in prison...the one whose profile fits these 8 young men? If he is still in prison then LE probably won't have to look to far.

jantel74

01-19-2008, 09:18 AM

Most of these young men look very similar. It would be helpful to know which missing men don't match these eight.

MeoW333

01-20-2008, 07:15 PM

numbernine

01-21-2008, 12:37 AM

Wow, the bone structure of Phillip John Koss

http://www.doenetwork.org/cases/1389dmfl.html

Looks very similar to 'Victim B'

http://www.foxnews.com/photoessay/0,4644,3123,00.html#2_0

kaylenbabysims

01-21-2008, 12:15 PM

Cant find much info on this missing guy...
Steven Leslie O'Brien
http://www.mcsc.ca/photo_dir/default.asp 6 row down . 3rd pic over

Thought he looked like victim A
http://www.foxnews.com/photoessay/0,4644,3123,00.html#1_0

Debbie Miller

01-21-2008, 12:55 PM

Wow, the bone structure of Phillip John Koss

http://www.doenetwork.org/cases/1389dmfl.html

Looks very similar to 'Victim B'

http://www.foxnews.com/photoessay/0,4644,3123,00.html#2_0

I have already called the detective who is handling Phillip's case and he has been ruled out.

SewingDeb

01-21-2008, 12:56 PM

Kaylenbabysims, it does look like a possibility.

Here's info:
http://www.mcsc.ca/photo_dir/obrien.asp

He would be in his 30's now.

SewingDeb

01-21-2008, 12:58 PM

Most of these young men look very similar. It would be helpful to know which missing men don't match these eight.

The killer definitely seems to have a "type" he likes to kill. Very similar bone structure for all eight.

I wonder if the hair and eye colors are guesses on these reconstructions. That has to be taken into consideration too.

ttrachel04

05-28-2008, 07:06 PM

alright ... ive never done this before ... but i thought id give this a shot ...

http://www.doenetwork.org/cases/3317dmfl.html

Lonnie Michael Rodriguez

he's from tampa, which is far away ... but you never know ...
i thought he resembled John Doe A

here's AMW's link:
http://www.amw.com/fugitives/video_photos.cfm?id=51867

ttrachel04

05-28-2008, 07:06 PM

sorry the link i just posted got messed up somehow ...

http://www.doenetwork.org/cases/3317dmfl.html

Salem

05-28-2008, 08:50 PM

ttrachel - I agree, he does look like reconstruction A. Good work!

I think you should call it in........

Salem

ttrachel04

06-02-2008, 05:46 PM

i tipped this in through AMW's website

barb0301

06-04-2008, 02:47 AM

i tipped this in through AMW's website

Great find !! Let us know if you hear anything !!

Bud

08-01-2008, 02:36 AM

It seems that a third man, Victim C, has been identified as Jon Tihay, based on DNA evidence from his family.

Please read Natalies message dated July 17, 2008 at 5:40 pm.

http://mylifeofcrime.wordpress.com/2007/11/24/eight-skeletal-remains-found-in-march-in-fort-myers-fl-leads-point-at-a-serial-killer-2-of-the-skeletons-have-now-been-identified/#comment-39858

Hopefully, the detectives can start making connections between the 3 men identified and the remaining 5 men who are still anonymous.

Bud

08-01-2008, 06:58 PM

Was Phillip John Koss ever confirmed or eliminated as one of the victims?

http://www.winknews.com/news/local/7913747.html

Debbie Miller

08-02-2008, 01:22 AM

Yes, Phillip Koss has been ruled out as a match. I talked with the Detective months ago and he confirmed a rule out.

Bud

08-02-2008, 10:50 AM

Thanks Debbie,

I thought I remembered reading that he had been ruled out, but wasn't sure.

Reviewing that news story again, he was a perfect match for one of the victims, based on age, location, date of disappearance and matching some of the injuries one of the victims sustained in life (wrist fractures).

The location he was reported last seen is only a couple of miles from the crime scene, too.

They did rule him out based on DNA, correct?

It would be awesome if someone who knew any of these three men... or was at least loosely acquainted with them back in 1994-96 would come forward and describe any more men that hung around in the same 'circles' (or were employed as a temporary worker/handyman)... or any that suddenly disappeared. See link below.

http://www.sun-herald.com/NewsArchive2/112207/np9.htm?date=112207&story=np9.htm

Bud

08-02-2008, 10:59 AM

Here's an excerpt from that story:

"Burden, in a recent letter to the Sun, said his 1994 encounter with Conahan was the "icing on the cake for me due to my own mental state of mind 12 years ago."

Burden was asked for advice on how to identify other potential Conahan victims. He recalled that there was another young man he worked with at a Fort Myers handyman service in 1994 who also disappeared about the same time.

The missing man also had made a date "to go party" with Conahan later the same night that Burden was assaulted, Burden said.

"There was talk of others at Handyman's on-the-job service of dudes missing, but that was looked at as if they just went back to where they had come from," Burden wrote."

I hope the LEOs have followed this lead.

natalie

09-18-2008, 01:32 PM

Bud

09-25-2008, 07:06 AM

5 more ID's to go!

Thanks Natalie.

It seems the detectives were able to locate a couple of previous addresses for Jon. Hopefully, they've checked out the day-laborer employment angle, too... since Conahan was known to fraternize with men working there. In addition, one of the articles stated that the police are not too concerned about the serial killer... leading one to believe the police know who it is and when he was removed from circulation (via death/incapacitation/incarceration).

This is looking more and more like Daniel Conahan's work. I really wonder, though, how many more of his victims are out there in the woods or near some hog trail waiting for discovery. Very sad and creepy. With these 8 victims... his suspected kill total is approaching the mid to high teens.

natalie

09-29-2008, 09:41 AM

chaddylex

10-10-2008, 04:56 PM

Bud

10-11-2008, 02:38 AM

Hi all!!

I was looking at the Doe Network and am wondering if they did any comparision to this guyhttp://www.doenetwork.orgCase File 1035UMFL to this guy Karl Epplerwww.doenetwork.orgCase File 1311DMFL . Let me know what you all think!!

chaddylex

Here's the link:

http://www.doenetwork.org/cases/1311dmfl.html

I checked it out and my first instinct is it's unrelated. Conahan was already in prison by then and the 8 bodies discovered in Fort Myers were almost certainly his victims. I think the 8 bodies were dated to 1995-96 at the latest.

http://www.trutv.com/library/crime/serial_killers/predators/conahan/link_11.html

I think they'll disclose at some point that these 8 men were "Hog Trail" victims.

Bud

10-11-2008, 02:43 AM

Hi all!!

I was looking at the Doe Network and am wondering if they did any comparision to this guyhttp://www.doenetwork.orgCase File 1035UMFL to this guy Karl Epplerwww.doenetwork.orgCase File 1311DMFL . Let me know what you all think!!

chaddylex

I don't know if anyone on the site has gone through the various networks looking for men that disappeared around 1994-1996 (who were living/working around Lee County, Collier County or Charlotte County).

I bet somewhere out there, at least one of the remaining 5 unidentified victims has been reported missing.

Bud

10-11-2008, 02:48 AM

Thanks Bud!

They should definitely check out the day laborers, I remember thats where Jon got work from all the time. I could probably even let Barry know which one he frequently used.

And I agree about it looking like Conahan's work, sick and sad, but true :(

Yes, it's almost certainly more victims of Dan Conahan. Everything falls too neatly into place. I haven't heard one reason why these 8 men could NOT be his victims... and so many reasons why they could.

I think the day laborer angle will definitely yield more leads, concerning the remaining 5 men who have not yet been ID'd. I'm from Collier County, originally, but living in San Diego now. If I was in the area, I'd check out that lead myself since I'm not confident it's been researched very thoroughly.