http://napavalleyregister.com/news/loca … d8565.html
Update: 2 Human Skeletons Found in Rural Napa County
The Napa County Sheriff’s Office is investigating the remains of two human skeletons that were found this week beside a rural Napa County road on a hillside that had been burned clean of ground cover in a recent wildland fire.
Concrete workers reported seeing what appeared to be a human skull within view of Butts Canyon Road on Monday, said Sheriff’s Capt. Keith Behlmer.
Although it looked like a skull, the workers did not stop to check it out until they noticed it again on Wednesday when they reported it, Behlmer said.
Sheriff’s investigators determined that the skull was human on Wednesday morning, Behlmer said.
The area was guarded throughout Wednesday night so the investigation could continue all day Thursday, he said.
Additional bones were located throughout the area, which was devastated by fire within the last year or two that removed ground cover, Behlmer said.
The remains appeared to have been washed down from the top of a nearby hill, he said. There were enough bones to assemble two human skeletons, but only one skull has been found so far, he said.
Despite an initial search of the area, which is being treated as a crime scene, there was no immediate indication of how the individuals died or how long ago, he said.
The Sheriff’s Search and Rescue Unit was on scene with investigators and a forensic team from the California State University at Chico’s Anthropology Department.
The remains are now located at the coroner’s office awaiting identification. If there is insufficient DNA evidence to identify the remains, it’s possible that a forensic anthropologist will attempt facial reconstruction, Behlmer said.
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Butts Canyon Road is in both Napa County and Lake County. It is quite rural and roughly runs between Pope Valley (near Angwin) and Middletown. I initially saw the story on the evening news tonight and they said it has been determined that the remains are not Native American.
Male/female, both? Any age indicated.
When I hear of two skeletons being found in CA…together I wonder if it could be Lynn Luray and Joseph Ray Carey? KDG, Esq.
No Shame, No Regrets, and No Apologies: Duty is Action; Fight or Die! Fight of I’ll Kill You Myself!
Just this week I was talking to my brother about this, he still lives in Napa County. There has been no new information since the initial reports about the bodies being found.
Just this week I was talking to my brother about this, he still lives in Napa County. There has been no new information since the initial reports about the bodies being found.
Lynn disappeared from Long Beach, rather too far away..I’d better guess on a second location of the Santa Rosa Hitchhiker Murder (who still might have been Z..). The road is close to Calistoga Road, where other victims had been found in the past. It’d be interesting if there are more in the area around.
QT
*ZODIACHRONOLOGY*
The remains found last March have been identified.
http://napavalleyregister.com/news/loca … 81481.html
The human remains found north of Pope Valley Road last March have been identified as two brothers from Santa Rosa who may have been seen fleeing a wildfire in July 2014, according to the Napa County Sheriff’s Office.
The brothers — Mario Avendano, 31, and Florentino Avendano, 45 — were reported missing to the Santa Rosa Police on Jan. 3, 2015, said Capt. Keith Behlmer. They were last seen in June 2014, a month before the fire, he said.
Their unidentified remains were found by concrete workers who noticed what appeared to be a human skull within view of Butts Canyon Road on March 7. Although it looked like a skull, the workers did not stop to check it out until they noticed it again two days later when they reported it, Behlmer said in March.
After determining that the skull was human, investigators guarded the area overnight in order to continue the investigation the following day. Additional bones were located throughout the area, which was devastated by the Butts Fire in July 2014.
The remains appeared to have been washed down from the top of a nearby hill. There were enough bones to assemble two human skeletons, but only one skull was located.
More bones, but no additional skull, were found in the same vicinity in the following days with the help of the Search and Rescue Unit.
During the initial search, Behlmer said that there was no immediate indication of how the individuals died or how long ago.
The bones were sent to the Anthropology Department at California State University in Chico, and, after DNA was collected from living family members, the remains were identified.
Behlmer said that the brothers were identified using DNA collected from their two sisters and with help from Santa Rosa Police.
“It was pretty cut and dry,” Behlmer said. “Luckily, we knew that there was a missing persons report prior,” he said.
Investigators believe the brothers were in the area during the July 2014 wildfire, Behlmer said. Santa Rosa Police informed the Napa County Sheriff’s Office that they believed the men had been dropped off at Butts Canyon Road in the Pope Valley area in 2014, he said.
The Butts Fire, which began July 1, 2014 off Butts Canyon Road in Pope Valley northwest of Lake Berryessa, burned 4,300 acres, according to Cal Fire. There were four reported injuries as well as two residences and seven outbuildings that were destroyed.
Berryessa Estates and the west side of the 7800 block of Butts Canyon Road north of Snell Valley Road were evacuated during the fire, according to Register reports. James Creek Road residents in Lake County were also evacuated.
Snell Valley, Butts Canyon and Aetna Springs roads were closed.
Firefighters at the time also reported seeing two Hispanic men running in the area of Butts Canyon Road and Snell Valley Road during the fire, Behlmer said. Firefighters tried to contact the men, but could not locate them.
Although people do hike in the area, Behlmer said that there are no known hiking trails. The area has also been known for illegal marijuana cultivation, he said.
“That is an area where there is a lot of illegal marijuana cultivation,” Behlmer said.
Why the brothers were in the area and how they died remain undetermined.
Thanks for the update. Sad…
“…they may be dealing with one or more ersatz Zodiacs–other psychotics eager to get into the act, or perhaps even other murderers eager to lay their crimes at the real Zodiac’s doorstep.“ L.A. Times, 1969
