PA PA - Economy Borough, Beaver Co, WhtFem 40-80, UP13338, embalmed head, gray hair, Dec'14

[JerseyWasHome2]

The funeral director I spoke with said they never use red balls, they have eye caps for that purpose. I looked them up, they look like giant contact lenses.

So, just spitballin’ ideas here….she looked like she was prepared for a viewing. She had red balls in her eye sockets, which a funeral director would not do. And of course, no one views just a head. No one has identified her, even though we have clear images.So, using Occam’s razor to get the simplest explanation that satisfies all known facts, here goes….1) She looks like she was prepared for a viewing because she was in fact viewed. 2) An unscrupulous person or people after the viewing removed her head from her body and the eyes from her head, to sell them. 3) The eyes were sold, but for some reason the head wasn’t. 4) It was discarded by the road where it was later found. 5) No one is looking for her because she was cremated, and any relatives assumed the head also was.

Anyone want to shoot holes in this, or have suggestions?

Good to know about the eye caps.

If she was embalmed, though, and a viewing took place a few days after her death, I think the eyes would be useless in the black market as the link above says the corneas deteriorate in 24 hours, plus the effect of the embalming fluid.

 

[Magnum P.E.]

Good to know about the eye caps.

If she was embalmed, though, and a viewing took place a few days after her death, I think the eyes would be useless in the black market as the link above says the corneas deteriorate in 24 hours, plus the effect of the embalming fluid.

Yep. Maybe the corneas were discarded as well. Who knows…..

 

[rosesfromangels]

Why haven't they extracted DNA from her teeth? It's not an easy process, but doable.

Thanks Magnum for the info on the eye caps; I had come across that info too. It further reinforces the demented nature of someone who would place rubber balls where eyes were. This type of desecration of earthly remains is beyond repulsive and deviant.

Amateur opinion and speculation

 

[Magnum P.E.]

Why haven't they extracted DNA from her teeth?

She had none.

 

[caradana]

The news article cited above suggests that, because it seems a lot of care was taken to disarticulate the skull from the spinal column, the goal might have been to get at her vertebrae. Not sure how much I buy that though, because it's not TOO difficult to remove the vertebral column from the back without disconnecting the head.
I have no idea why the head would be discarded or have rubber balls for eyes. If they were trying to impede ID why not just remove the eyes and leave it like that...
I'm actually doing a week at a funeral home next week to learn how to embalm. I'll ask if theres any situation where they would use a rubber ball (but I'm suspecting they'll say "wtf no")

Ok how totally interesting. Will be fascinated by what you learn! Hope you will post about it!

 

[CCJD]

She had none.

“PATCHWORK DENTISTRY”
If anyone is likely to identify Jane Doe, it might be a dentist.

Authorities found a full set of teeth inside the woman’s mouth and took X-rays. Dentists at the University at Buffalo School of Dental Medicine examined the head and determined that work had been done on every single tooth – one of them as many as seven times.

Using one of three teeth they pulled, the dentists also found what they believe to be a filling compound that wasn’t available to dentists before 2004, meaning the woman likely died sometime thereafter. Based on their examination, dentists Raymond Miller and Peter Bush were able to posit a possible profile of Jane Doe: a lower-income woman who had many cavities and may have grown up where the water wasn’t fluoridated.

https://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-bodies-head-specialreport/special-report-a-womans-severed-head-was-found-in-the-woods-who-is-she-idUSKBN1D21B4/

 

[JerseyWasHome2]

She had none.

Where did you learn that?

 

[JerseyWasHome2]

“PATCHWORK DENTISTRY”
If anyone is likely to identify Jane Doe, it might be a dentist.

Authorities found a full set of teeth inside the woman’s mouth and took X-rays. Dentists at the University at Buffalo School of Dental Medicine examined the head and determined that work had been done on every single tooth – one of them as many as seven times.

Using one of three teeth they pulled, the dentists also found what they believe to be a filling compound that wasn’t available to dentists before 2004, meaning the woman likely died sometime thereafter. Based on their examination, dentists Raymond Miller and Peter Bush were able to posit a possible profile of Jane Doe: a lower-income woman who had many cavities and may have grown up where the water wasn’t fluoridated.

https://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-bodies-head-specialreport/special-report-a-womans-severed-head-was-found-in-the-woods-who-is-she-idUSKBN1D21B4/

Thanks for that 2017 article. Definitely contains even more interesting information.

 

[Magnum P.E.]

Where did you learn that?

Sorry! My mistake, confused with another case. She definitely had teeth.

 

[rosesfromangels]

Sorry! My mistake, confused with another case. She definitely had teeth.

If so, they should be able to extract DNA!

Amateur opinion and speculation

 

[truenoblesavage]

The funeral director I spoke with said they never use red balls, they have eye caps for that purpose. I looked them up, they look like giant contact lenses.

So, just spitballin’ ideas here….she looked like she was prepared for a viewing. She had red balls in her eye sockets, which a funeral director would not do. And of course, no one views just a head. No one has identified her, even though we have clear images.So, using Occam’s razor to get the simplest explanation that satisfies all known facts, here goes….1) She looks like she was prepared for a viewing because she was in fact viewed. 2) An unscrupulous person or people after the viewing removed her head from her body and the eyes from her head, to sell them. 3) The eyes were sold, but for some reason the head wasn’t. 4) It was discarded by the road where it was later found. 5) No one is looking for her because she was cremated, and any relatives assumed the head also was.

Additional note: I believe that chemicals associated with attempted resuscitation were found in her. Probably no foul play, and probably died under some kind of medical care (hospital, emts, something else…).
Anyone want to shoot holes in this, or have suggestions?

The cremation thought is really interesting, I like it. You gotta wonder though…even if no one would be (possibly rightfully) looking for her, wouldn’t word of a head of an older woman being found in the area catch a family members attention?

…well, I guess if that would have been the case, this would be solved already, huh? Hah, my my, this case is such a mind twister!

 

[bombardier]

Ok how totally interesting. Will be fascinated by what you learn! Hope you will post about it!

oops yea i totally forgot to report back! recollection a bit hazy bc it was a year ago now but at the funeral home, they explained the eye caps only worked if there was still a suitable 'base' i.e. eyeball with enough roundness for the cap to sit on. this funeral home had some white, plastic, textured balls that could be inserted into the orbit if the eye was missing / was too collapsed to support the cap. i asked if theyd ever seen a red rubber ball used in that way, and he said he hadnt, because 1. bright colors might show thru the eyelid 2. a smooth rubber ball has no hold BUT he wouldnt put it past a budget funeral home to use cheap rubber balls like that, w/ the assumption ofc that the family will never find out.

 

[LilacStar79]

Perhaps there is an illegal body parts harvesting going on like there was in NY/NJ. There were funeral director involved. The organs would be removed prior to embalming. Idk what’s up with the red balls however. I’ve always used mortuary wax to build up the eye in énucléation cases myself.

 

[Michael_Rivers]

I was just browsing through the threads and when I did a quick Google search I was surprised at the lack of press coverage for this particular case. However, I found this one from December 2022 that might be of interest: Increased reward temporarily offered for information on embalmed head found in Economy

I doubt I'll be able to add much more to this thread but I hope this helps trigger some new thinking.

 

[caradana]

oops yea i totally forgot to report back! recollection a bit hazy bc it was a year ago now but at the funeral home, they explained the eye caps only worked if there was still a suitable 'base' i.e. eyeball with enough roundness for the cap to sit on. this funeral home had some white, plastic, textured balls that could be inserted into the orbit if the eye was missing / was too collapsed to support the cap. i asked if theyd ever seen a red rubber ball used in that way, and he said he hadnt, because 1. bright colors might show thru the eyelid 2. a smooth rubber ball has no hold BUT he wouldnt put it past a budget funeral home to use cheap rubber balls like that, w/ the assumption ofc that the family will never find out.

This is squarely in the category of “things I would never learn if not for Websleuths.” @bombardier - what a report! How is your career path going?

 

[bombardier]

This is squarely in the category of “things I would never learn if not for Websleuths.” @bombardier - what a report! How is your career path going?

its going well! i mostly do organ dissection now but 1 week a month i do autopsies

 

[steeltowngirl]

Baffling unsolved Beaver County mystery featured on Netflix series

Investigators are hoping new worldwide exposure may ultimately give them answers on why an embalmed head was found in Beaver County nearly a decade ago.

www.wpxi.com

 

[dotr]

 

[dotr]

Apologies for two posts in a row, but pretty excited about this case on Netflix's Unsolved Mysteries, it was well done and included some intriguing twists and turns.
Immediately following that one (about the UID head), was another very interesting unsolved case that was completely new to me, concerning a student pianist whose murdered body was left on the university theater stage, surprisingly, there was not a thread here, so got one started for anybody who might be interested..

NJ - NJ- Sigrid Stevenson, 25, grad student @Trenton State College, pianist, S.A., bludgeoned, body left on the Kendall Hall stage, 4/9/77,*New initiative*

https://meaww.com/unsolved-mysteries-who-killed-sigrid-stevenson-inside-chilling-story-of-new-jersey-native-beaten-to-death Very lengthy. By Roxanne Fequiere July 31, 2024 https://www.netflix.com/tudum/articles/unsolved-mysteries-volume-4-episode-4-murder-center-stage ''On the evening of Sept...

www.websleuths.com

 

[fred&edna]

Apologies for two posts in a row, but pretty excited about this case on Netflix's Unsolved Mysteries, it was well done and included some intriguing twists and turns.
Immediately following that one (about the UID head), was another very interesting unsolved case that was completely new to me, concerning a student pianist whose murdered body was left on the university theater stage, surprisingly, there was not a thread here, so got one started for anybody who might be interested..

NJ - NJ- Sigrid Stevenson, 25, grad student @Trenton State College, pianist, S.A., bludgeoned, body left on the Kendall Hall stage, 4/9/77,*New initiative*

https://meaww.com/unsolved-mysteries-who-killed-sigrid-stevenson-inside-chilling-story-of-new-jersey-native-beaten-to-death Very lengthy. By Roxanne Fequiere July 31, 2024 https://www.netflix.com/tudum/articles/unsolved-mysteries-volume-4-episode-4-murder-center-stage ''On the evening of Sept...

www.websleuths.com

I did know about Sigrid Stevenson's unsolved murder so I'm very surprised there was no thread here! Thank you for starting one... it's a really puzzling case.

jmo