Disposable camera brings new hope in case of unidentified skeleton

VC Star - CA, USA

Disposable camera brings new hope in case of unidentified skeleton

By Adam Foxman
Ventura County Star
Posted January 21, 2012 at 7:01 p.m.

Found partly sunken in leafy ground at a secluded makeshift camp near Oxnard's northern coast, the unidentified man's skeleton was surrounded by what was likely everything he owned.

For six years, none of the roughly 50 found items led authorities to the man's identity. The mystery persisted as his dental X-rays and DNA profile provided no match.

Now, investigators at the Ventura County Medical Examiner-Coroner's Office are hoping a long-forgotten disposable camera will give this John Doe his real name — with a little help from the public.

Found near the skeleton, the 35 mm Fuji had 13 of its 24 exposures taken, but the film was not developed until several weeks ago.

The camera and a few Bibles found in the area were discovered recently by an Oxnard detective going through stored evidence, said Mónica Muñoz, an Oxnard police spokeswoman.

"It was probably just forgotten," Muñoz said. (more...)