Identified! CA - Redondo Beach, BlkFem UP3342, 20-40, at construction site, Aug'01 - Catherine Parker-Johnson

[CarlK90245]

Although his other victims were young men, serial killer Patrick Kearney lived the Redondo Beach area. Known as the "Trash Bag Killer," he dumped many of his victims along the freeway or in the desert and often in bags. He also dismembered many of them, which might account for the lack of a skull in Jane Doe's case. I wonder if there could be a link between these cases?

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Patrick_Kearney

I knew one of Kearney's 28 victims, John LaMay. His brother was on my pop-warner football team, and his mother and my mother are members of the same church. As I understand it, John's partial remains were found in a trash bag in a rest-stop in Colton, CA, and his head was never found.

Kearney was a homosexual who targeted other boys and young men. AFAIK, he didn't have any interest in killing women.

 

[Julessleuther]

I cannot think of their names right now, but there were two serial killers who use to pull girls into their van. I believe Redondo/Hermosa Beach area was one of their prowling areas.

Found it! Lawrence Bittaker and Roy Norris
Maybe this was one of their victims-supposedly there are unknown victims, from photographs found.

 

[CarlK90245]

I cannot think of their names right now, but there were two serial killers who use to pull girls into their van. I believe Redondo/Hermosa Beach area was one of their prowling areas.

Found it! Lawrence Bittaker and Roy Norris
Maybe this was one of their victims-supposedly there are unknown victims, from photographs found.

Charley Project lists two missing teenaged girls who were victims of Bittaker and Norris, and both were last seen in Redondo Beach:

Lucinda Schaefer and Andrea Hall

http://www.charleyproject.org/cases/s/schaefer_lucinda.html
http://www.charleyproject.org/cases/h/hall_andrea.html

Although Charley Project says Lucinda was last seen in Torrance, she actually was last seen at St. Andrews Church on the corner of Avenue D and Pacific Coast Highway, which is Redondo Beach.

Avenue D and Pacific Coast Highway Redondo Beach CA - Google Maps

I drive past that church two or three times per week, and every time I go past there, I think of Lucinda.

I don't think this UID was a Bittaker Norris victim. Their MO was to take their victims into the San Gabriel mountains where they would hold them for several days, torturing, raping, and murdering them and dumping their bodies in remote areas. One exception was Lynette Ledford, whom they murdered in the mountains, but left her body in a front yard of a randomly chosen home for shock value.

IMO, this UID, who was buried in a back yard doesn't fit their MO.

 

[CarlK90245]

While browsing NamUs, I came across this case, and it caught my attention because I live quite close to Redondo Beach.

There is very little info and a wide time frame, but all available info fits Carol Jeanne Lubahn.

http://www.charleyproject.org/cases/l/lubahn_carol.html

The height is within an inch, her age is within range, and her car was found in Redondo Beach in the parking lot of the old Red Onion restaurant (now the Cheesecake Factory) near the corner of N. Harbor Drive and Portofino Way. I wonder where in Redondo Beach the remains were found.

<snip>

Yesterday, Carol Lubahn's husband Michael confessed to her murder, saying that he weighted her body with cinderblocks and disposed of her body in the ocean approximately 500-800 yards offshore near Point Vicente in Palos Verdes.

http://www.mercurynews.com/californ...-lubahn-clark-confesses-1981-killing-his-wife

That got me thinking of this case again. I'm wondering if they are absolutely certain that this was UID was female.

Because the location where the bones were found is less than a mile from the Redondo Beach home of serial killer Patrick Kearney (AKA the Trash Bag Murderer). Kearney lived near the corner of Robinson and Aviation. This UID's partial remains were found in a trash bag on Wollacott Street. However, Kearney was a homosexual who AFAIK, targeted only young males.

 

[Ambercat]

Yesterday, Carol Lubahn's husband Michael confessed to her murder, saying that he weighted her body with cinderblocks and disposed of her body in the ocean approximately 500-800 yards offshore near Point Vicente in Palos Verdes.

http://www.mercurynews.com/californ...-lubahn-clark-confesses-1981-killing-his-wife

That got me thinking of this case again. I'm wondering if they are absolutely certain that this was UID was female.

Because the location where the bones were found is less than a mile from the Redondo Beach home of serial killer Patrick Kearney (AKA the Trash Bag Murderer). Kearney lived near the corner of Robinson and Aviation. This UID's partial remains were found in a trash bag on Wollacott Street. However, Kearney was a homosexual who AFAIK, targeted only young males.

The circumstances do sound similar to "George" the hitchhiker, one of Patrick Kearney's first victims --
https://identifyus.org/en/cases/4440
http://www.websleuths.com/forums/showthread.php?t=156745
http://www.websleuths.com/forums/showthread.php?t=156248

I'm not sure, yet I would guess since the LA Coroner has two types of DNA for the UID this is how they know they are female?

 

[CarlK90245]

The circumstances do sound similar to "George" the hitchhiker, one of Patrick Kearney's first victims --
https://identifyus.org/en/cases/4440
http://www.websleuths.com/forums/showthread.php?t=156745
http://www.websleuths.com/forums/showthread.php?t=156248

I'm not sure, yet I would guess since the LA Coroner has two types of DNA for the UID this is how they know they are female?

Since they have a full DNA profile on this UID, they should be certain whether it is male or female.

The remains of "George" were found in Culver City (and remain UID), so even if these remains belonged to a Male, they wouldn't be George. I was thinking more along the lines of Robert Benniefiel or Michael McGhee, although Kearney told authorities that they would never find the remains of McGhee.

 

[Ambercat]

Since they have a full DNA profile on this UID, they should be certain whether it is male or female.

The remains of "George" were found in Culver City (and remain UID), so even if these remains belonged to a Male, they wouldn't be George. I was thinking more along the lines of Robert Benniefiel or Michael McGhee, although Kearney told authorities that they would never find the remains of McGhee.

I think I misspoke/mistyped, I meant the disposal of the body sounded similar to what happened to George. :blushing: Was it a new construction site or an old site being torn down and something new rebuilt? If it was the latter and Patrick Kearney buried Robert Benniefiel or Michael McGhee in a construction site that something was built on top of, I guess you could say that person wouldn't usually be found (although sometimes they are).

 

[CarlK90245]

While browsing NamUs, I came across this case, and it caught my attention because I live quite close to Redondo Beach.

There is very little info and a wide time frame, but all available info fits Carol Jeanne Lubahn.

http://www.charleyproject.org/cases/l/lubahn_carol.html

The height is within an inch, her age is within range, and her car was found in Redondo Beach in the parking lot of the old Red Onion restaurant (now the Cheesecake Factory) near the corner of N. Harbor Drive and Portofino Way. I wonder where in Redondo Beach the remains were found.

<snip>

Yesterday, Carol Lubahn's husband Michael confessed to her murder, saying that he weighted her body with cinderblocks and disposed of her body in the ocean approximately 500-800 yards offshore near Point Vicente in Palos Verdes.

http://www.mercurynews.com/californ...-lubahn-clark-confesses-1981-killing-his-wife

That got me thinking of this case again. I'm wondering if they are absolutely certain that this was UID was female.

Because the location where the bones were found is less than a mile from the Redondo Beach home of serial killer Patrick Kearney (AKA the Trash Bag Murderer). Kearney lived near the corner of Robinson and Aviation. This UID's partial remains were found in a trash bag on Wollacott Street. However, Kearney was a homosexual who AFAIK, targeted only young males.

Just adding a note here that last night, Dateline (with Keith Morrison) did an episode on the Carol Lubahn case.

At the end of the hour, Keith Morrison explained that Michael Lubahn's story about Carol's body being dumped offshore of the Palos Verdes lighthouse was also a lie.

Michael Lubahn now says he buried Carol's body, and has led authorities to the general location of the burial site. (This location was not disclosed in the Dateline episode.) He also passed a polygraph to support his new story. Authorities over the "next few months" will be attempting to locate the burial spot. It was not clear when this episode was recorded. But it looks hopeful that her body may finally be found (if it hasn't already been found).

In retrospect, I should have suspected that the Point Vicente story was not a credible story. The shoreline at Point Vicente is entirely lined with vertical cliffs, and there is only one trail that takes you from the parking lot down the cliffs to the water. It would have been quite a task to drag a rowboat and a body down the path that runs down the cliffside at Point Vicente, row the boat offshore, dump her body, and then drag the rowboat back up the cliffside path to his car.

Here's the Daily Breeze article regarding his change of story about the disposal site.

http://www.dailybreeze.com/general-...k-changes-story-again-on-torrance-wifes-death

Michael Lubahn Clark said in an interview with the Daily Breeze that investigators won't find his wife's remains off the coast of Rancho Palos Verdes because he never put her there.

"That was my original plan," Clark said. "I've been told not to talk about details right now. She may be somewhere else."

Clark's son, Michael Lubahn Jr., said his father has told investigators where his wife's remains are located, but Clark, prosecutors and Torrance police all declined to comment on where they plan to look.

Torrance police Sgt. Robert Watt said detectives are working to verify Clark's latest account now that he has told them the ocean should not be their focus.

"He has now recanted that statement and we are now working on his new statement," Watt said. "Detectives and the D.A.'s Office continue to work these leads so the family can have closure on what happened to Carol Lubahn."

 

[killer Chaser]

NamUs UP # 3342 https://identifyus.org/cases/3342
(Not in DoeNetwork)

Unidentified White Female
* The victim was discovered on August 22, 2001 in Redondo Beach, CA.

Vital Statistics
* Age: 20 to 50 Years
* Height: 5'5" (65 inches)
* Body Condition: Not recognizable - Partial skeletal parts only
* Approx Date of Death: 1960 to 1996
* Comments: No skull or teeth found

Case History
* Remains found in a plastic bag during a dig at a new home site in Redondo Beach. Per anthropologist, bones to be greater than 5 years and potentially decades old. Age is estimated at 20-50 years

Marilee Lee Braszer http://www.charleyproject.org/cases/b/bruszer_marilee.html Sylvia Helen Carlson http://www.charleyproject.org/cases/c/carlson_sylvia.html Robin Ann Graham http://www.charleyproject.org/cases/g/graham_robin.html

 

[carbuff]

I don't see anything new for this case.

She has both dentals and DNA.

https://identifyus.org/cases/3342

 

[CarlK90245]

I don't see anything new for this case.

She has both dentals and DNA.

https://identifyus.org/cases/3342

I found this little blurb from the Daily Breeze archive search. The article is subscription only, so here is the relevant portion of the article.

SPANNING THE YEAR
What's new on some of the South Bay's stories of 2001

...

Human bones: Construction workers made a grisly discovery Aug. 29 in Redondo Beach when they unearthed a bag of human bones.

The bones were buried in plastic at the rear of a lot where a home once stood on Wollacott Street. New condos were going up.

Police said the bones -- including ribs, legs, arms and vertebrae -- were likely that of a woman. No skull was found.

Detectives set out to figure out who the woman is, how she died, and who killed her.

Update: The events of Sept. 11 slowed the investigation, but Redondo Beach detectives are back at it.

"We still have not been able to identify her," Redondo Beach police Sgt. Phil Keenan said.

Keenan said the investigation remains active and detectives are following leads

...

Interesting that they are now saying dentals are available on this Jane Doe, when the contemporaneous article indicates that a skull was not recovered.

 

[carbuff]

Her new Namus link is returning a page not found error: Unidentified Person Case

 

[CarlK90245]

Her new Namus link is returning a page not found error: Unidentified Person Case

It came up for me.

 

[carbuff]

It came up for me.

I've been having intermittent problems with pages not found one time turning up after I log out and log back in again...don't know if it's me or them.

 

[Liz90278]

I didn't ask, but according to Daniel Machian, they did have a DNA profile on the UID, although he did not know whether the profile was in CODIS.

It may be something like the fact that Carol had given birth and the UID had no evidence of prior pregnancy. (Although I don't know that to be true of the UID)

Hi Carl,
I’m new to this platform. Please excuse my lack of knowledge on how this all works.

I live 6 blocks from where Jane Doe was found. My neighbor, in passing, mentioned a body had been found when they lived on Wollacott. If a private citizen wanted to delve deeper into this case or possibly try to get Jane Doe’s DNA IN CODIS what would be the protocol for this? I’ve felt almost desperate, for unexplained reasons, to find out who this woman is. I found the exact address where she was found. My friend lives directly nextdoor, she shares a south side backyard fence to where her body was found. I feel compelled to keep this case moving forward but have no idea where do go from here. Thank you for your time.

 

[CarlK90245]

I don't know what to tell you other than that you could probably call Daniel Machian at the LA County Coroner's office. He would probably tell you what they have and haven't done for this case vis a vis CODIS.

Los Angeles County is one of the worst locations in the country for preserving biological material from Doe cases. For over 100 years, they have been cremating all their UID's and burying the ashes in common graves at a cemetery on 1st and Lorena in Boyle Heights. Only recently have they been doing DNA profiles before cremating them, though IDK if 2001 is recently enough.

 

[Liz90278]

I don't know what to tell you other than that you could probably call Daniel Machian at the LA County Coroner's office. He would probably tell you what they have and haven't done for this case vis a vis CODIS.

Los Angeles County is one of the worst locations in the country for preserving biological material from Doe cases. For over 100 years, they have been cremating all their UID's and burying the ashes in common graves at a cemetery on 1st and Lorena in Boyle Heights. Only recently have they been doing DNA profiles before cremating them, though IDK if 2001 is recently enough.

Thank you so much for your quick reply. Wow, I’ve heard they do the mass burial, I didn’t know they used to include the UID’s. SMH. Thank you for the above name, I will look into it.

 

[CarlK90245]

Thank you so much for your quick reply. Wow, I’ve heard they do the mass burial, I didn’t know they used to include the UID’s. SMH. Thank you for the above name, I will look into it.

They still do include UIDs. Now, they just retain DNA before doing so.

 

[Nancy Drew RN]

The address in question for the bones is 1624 Wollacott, per a contemporary article. Property information for California is difficult to come by, but the immediately surrounding homes are of various ages, with some as early as the 1940s, and the immediate next door neighbor in 2001 (quite possibly at the same time as this house). Online records exist for the previous house on the site as far back as 1979. There are real estate photos online that show the backyard of the present house--even accounting for the present home being larger, the houses are quite close together on all sides, and I can't see a body being buried there without the resident's knowledge. It would be difficult to access the backyard at all at most of the homes on the street, as they have expanded to fill the lots over the years.

I found an article from 1960 referencing a large drug bust at 1609 Wollacott, with 2 kg of marijuana and 2,000 "pep pills" seized. No clear connection to anything, beyond proximity. Very little info about the people involved.

Another find was a failed double suicide/murder in 1966--a couple hoping to adopt a child had been denied, and they attempted to kill her (various articles refer to her as being nine or ten months old) and themselves, via carbon monoxide poisoning but only succeeded in killing the child. This was at 1713 Wollacott. They received 5 years probation.

Interestingly, the bones were found the same month that Jana Carpenter-Koplich went missing in nearby Lakewood. Her husband was eventually convicted of her murder, but her body has never been found. I had never heard about her case until I saw an article about her husband Bruce being questioned, right next to the original article about the discovery of these bones. Not at all suggesting that there's a relationship between the two.

 

[Liz90278]

In regards to 1624 Wollacott, yes the houses are very close together. The lot is sandwiched between two homes and the rear abuts a parking lot of a business. The house is built on a hill, the rear backyard fence has an approximate 12ft sheer wall down to the parking lot. It seems unlikely someone accessed the backyard from Aviation blvd. I can send you a picture if you’re interested.