By Tim Schmidt Record Managing Editor One theory holds that a headless, handless body found off a rural Warren County highway almost 30 years ago could be that of a GM employee who transferred from a …
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Theories abound in cold case
Posted
By Tim SchmidtRecord Managing EditorOne theory holds that a headless, handless body found off a rural Warren County highway almost 30 years ago could be that of a GM employee who transferred from a Michigan facility.Another theory speculates the man may have been involved in mob-related activity and his body was dumped here.The only thing Matt Schmutz, a lieutenant with the Warren County Sheriff’s Department, knows for certain is that the body is not that of a local resident.“We are a pretty tight-knit community so people know when somebody is missing or someone would have said something,” he said.On Monday, the remains were exhumed from the unmarked grave where they were buried in the Warrenton City Cemetery in 1987.A number of people representing almost a dozen agencies, including the Missouri Highway Patrol, FBI and St. Louis County Medical Examiner’s Officer, gathered at the cemetery. Forensic experts, including Dr. Lindsay Trammell, dug and sifted through the mud until finally finding the bag that held the man’s remains.The bones were removed and placed into another bag so that they could be cleaned and inspected further. The remains will then be sent to the University of North Texas Center for Human Identification, according to Schmutz.The exhumation was held in an attempt to gather a DNA sample and enter it into databases to be compared with other missing person and unidentified cases. DNA testing was not in existence at the time the body was found.Schmutz is hopeful the man can be identified as early as next week if a match is found in one of the DNA databases.“I am very optimistic,” Schmutz said. “I don’t know if he will get a hit, but it will be there to compare if anybody comes forward or family members have been tested.”The unidentified body, found with his head and hands cut off, was discovered on Memorial Day in 1987 off Highway W, about nine miles north of Warrenton and close to Highway A.The death was ruled a homicide by the St. Louis Medical Examiner’s office. The man’s hands likely were cut off to prevent police from using fingerprints to identify the body.The white male was described as having fair skin and believed to be between 35 and 45 years old. He was estimated to be 5-foot-8 to 5-foot-10 inches tall and weighed between 230 to 245 pounds.According to police, the man had an irregular scar on his right side, about 2 inches long, that was possibly from an old gunshot wound that was not treated professionally.An autopsy revealed the man had hypertensive heart disease and coronary artery disease with an enlarged heart. A toxicology report also tested positive for alcohol and cocaine.The man was wearing a dark blue “1987 Rose Bowl” Michigan Wolverine extra-large shirt with Oscar de la Renta jeans and white Nike high-top shoes. A 1983 gold-colored token from the Kansas City International Airport was located in a front pocket of the man’s pants.Authorities believe the man was killed elsewhere and his body was dumped at the location off Highway W. They estimated the body had been there four to five days prior to being discovered.Schmutz said the case’s most promising lead was received following media reports in February.“There were 54 to 55 leads initially in 1987,” Schmutz said. “The case went ice cold from there.”The case is one of two that remain unsolved involving bodies found in Warren County.On June 28, 2004, a female torso was found at a Wright City rest stop along Interstate 70. Her head, arms and legs were cut off and have never been found.The woman is believed to be Caucasian in her mid to late 20s and had a C-section and appendectomy scars. Authorities believe the woman was killed somewhere else and then her body was dumped.Anyone with information or clues related to either case can contact the Warren County Sheriff’s Department at 636-456-4332.
Forensic anthropologist Dr. Lindsay Trammell, left, places the bones belonging to a man whose body was dumped off Highway W in 1989 onto a tarp. The man's remains were exhumed Monday as part of an effort to obtain a DNA sample and learn his identity. Tim Schmidt photo.
