Tips Sought In Long-Unsolved Death Investigations

SAN DIEGO, CA — Authorities reached out to the public Thursday for help in identifying five young people whose names and life stories have remained shrouded in mystery for decades following their deaths in the San Diego area.

In hopes of finally getting answers about the long-unsolved cases, the San Diego County Medical Examiner's Office has collaborated with the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children, the National Missing and Unidentified Persons System, Rady Children's Hospital and a forensic artist who has created renderings of how the decedents might have looked around the time of their demises.

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The shortest-running of the death investigations centers on a dark- haired teen or young man whose body was found in Sweetwater Reservoir in Spring Valley on Jan. 2, 1999. Investigators estimate that his remains had been in the water for one to two days, according to the medical examiner. He was possibly Asian, American Indian or Alaska Native, 5 feet, 6 inches tall and about 165 pounds, and likely 17 to 22 years old when he died.

On his left shoulder, he had a large tattoo depicting a banner emblazoned the word "wicca" along with a bird in flight shaped like the letter "V," an ankh symbol and a pentagram, and he wore a gold-colored hoop earring in his left ear, the county office reported.

The other unidentified decedents were:

-- A boy age 2 to 4 who was found on May 4, 2004, in a wooded area of Rancho Bernardo. His body was inside a green-and-tan canvas travel bag and dressed in red warmup-style pants, a red sweatshirt and grayish-tan socks with red trim.

-- A roughly 15-year-old Hispanic boy who was found dead on March 16, 1995, near the Tijuana River. His body was clad in black Attrak-brand jeans, a hooded sweatshirt, two crucifix necklaces and black Puma shoes with red stripes. His hair was cropped on the sides, and his left ear was pierced.

-- An approximately 12- to 16-year-old boy found on July 22, 1979, on the Imperial Beach shoreline. Due to decomposition, little is known about him. He was about 5 feet tall and roughly 100 pounds with brown hair, and was wearing Lee jeans. He may have been Caucasian or Hispanic.

-- A girl or young woman estimated to have been 14 to 18 years old at the time of her death. Her body was found on Feb. 14, 1978, near Procter Valley Road, dressed in denim overalls and a white halter top with a blue floral pattern. She had extensive dental work, shoulder-length brown hair in a ponytail, pierced ears and a slightly malformed right ear.

Anyone who might be able to help investigators identify any of the decedents asked to call the Medical Examiner's Office at 858-694-2895.

— City News Service