KY - Bill Sparkman, census worker, found dead in Clay County cemetery

[mysteriew]

I've never been a census taker. But I took part in a census interview once a long time ago. I seem to remember about a half hour of questions, asking things like # and ages of family members/home residents, own or rent home, number of rooms, how long lived there, number of cars, how many members work and things like that. They didn't ask to look around or anything.

 

[MadeaBecBec]

I know this might be OT but what exactly are the census takers allowed to ask you about or search in your home or property?

The Census workers ask for your Full Name, Your Race and Ethnicity, The names of all persons living in the household and their ages and relation to the head of the household, If you Own or Rent the home, if the address is not listed on the previous census (every ten years is a Federal Census) with the "now" head of household then a question of when it was purchased or rented is asked, Also, a Federal Census will ask your Income level (not exact amount) and Job Description. Now the next Federal Census, takes place in 2010, a mass questionaire mailing to recorded addresses will be sent out, people are required by law to fill them out and mail them back. So, Mr. Sparkman was not actually performing a census so to speak, of population. I believe Mr. Sparkman was out doing field work to prepare for the upcoming Federal Census. Field workers go out and record addresses and maps to areas that haven't been done so by a previous census. New housing and newly developed areas. Unless, Mr. Sparkman was doing a census for crime statistics, he should not have been interviewing anyone, at this time. I don't believe a crime statistic census is done in the year before a Federal Census, so, that's probably not what Mr. Sparkman was doing. Field workers, now record GPS coordinance on their laptops, while in their vehicles, also inputting the street address of each home or business, if that address is displayed at street level, there's really no reason for a field worker to leave their vehicle, some even use binoculars to read the numbers on buildings.

I believe Mr. Sparkman came up on some type of crime and he was a witness that had to be eliminated, the way that he was displayed, was just for shock value and to throw off the Investigators. That's my honest speculation!!

My sympathies and prayers are with Mr. Sparkmans loved ones.

 

[kiddo25]

Ive been part of the US census and never even met the worker face to face. He used to call about every 6 months just to see if we still lived in the same place and if we worked at the same place and had benefits and stuff. That was it. The questions were pretty dry and inane. Only stuff the govt would want to know about. So I think its a good assumption that this guy was out to ask these same type of questions of people without a known phone and ran across some type of illegal activity and thats why he was killed. If the people were on drugs they were probably paranoid and maybe thought there was more to it than there was. Just my opinion. What kind of crime though? Who knows. It coulda been something as simple as tax evasion that they were worried about. Hard to tell.

 

[MeoW333]

I really think it was a hate crime and the man may have been gay. He was known as "Fe Fe"? Sounds like a name you would call a toy poodle, yet he embraced the nickname and had it on his license plate until he became a scouts then changed it to eagle something.
He was never married, yet adopted his son as a baby and raised him up.
There is discrepancy as to "Fed" being readable. If it was wrote in marker or felt tip pen it also could have smudged at some point, the body wasn't discovered right away.
It sounds like a hate crime, also being that he was found only with his socks on..
Now the question would be was it a case of him being in the wrong place at the wrong time, maybe a jilted lover?, or a romantic tryst gone wrong. I've heard of cases where people will choke eachother while having sex (not sure of the technical name) and then accidently kill one erotic asphixation (spelling?) and maybe make it look like a murder as they didn't want their small town to know they were gay do to the bias people have..?
Just throwing some ideas out there..

 

[lizzybeth]

MeoW333, I have been having the same thoughts as you, but didn't want to offend anyone. I've been wrong many times but I think this man's murder had more to do with his sexual orientation (or what I think his sexual orientation might have been) than with his job as a census taker.

Either way, it's sad and I feel really bad for his son. It sounds like he and his son had a good relationship.

 

[MeoW333]

MeoW333, I have been having the same thoughts as you, but didn't want to offend anyone. I've been wrong many times but I think this man's murder had more to do with his sexual orientation (or what I think his sexual orientation might have been) than with his job as a census taker.

Either way, it's sad and I feel really bad for his son. It sounds like he and his son had a good relationship.

I agree completely with you.. especially if he may have been flamboyant, it would have been a red flag for any people who hate out there in the rural country.
Especially being the way his body was staged, definitely pertains to something sexual in nature, being only in his socks, his clothes found in the bed of his truck.
Asphyxiation was stated as the official COD yet he was found hanging with his feet touching the ground. I wonder if his body has shown any signs of defensive wounds? That would be quite helpful to know.. there could be a couple different scenarios

Someone could have lured him with sexual innuendo and either something went wrong during auto-erotic asphyxiation if they were doing that
Or it was staged to look like that, with "fed" scrawled to throw off the real reason, or perhaps the killer didn't like homosexual feds, or didn't want to report a sexual accident do to the stigma of being homosexual in a rural more bias setting.

I wish we knew exactly what type of other marks, wounds, cuts, defensive or otherwise he may have had..


http://www.csmonitor.com/2009/1001/p02s13-usju.html

"One concern is that the official silence could mean that the trail has grown cold. Secrets can be well-kept among the the close-knit clans in rural parts of Appalachia, where even an outwardly harmless man like Sparkman could have been perceived as a threat, or even a Drug Enforcement Admininstration informant."

 

[MeoW333]

There is so much talk about him being killed since he was working for the government, possibly stumbling across a pot field, or meth lab, moonshine making.
Any of those scenarios i think would have resulted in him just being killed; most likely shot and buried. There would be no reason to leave him naked aside from socks hanging from a tree with "fed" scrawled on his chest.

Drug runners won't bother to undress and write on their victims, or go to the trouble to display them. They would shoot them and then dispose of the body most likely out of view, while getting rid of the truck. Maybe if they wanted to make a point they'd put a "sign" of some sort on the victim, however they wouldn't undress them. Neither would antigovernment individuals go through the trouble of undressing him if they killed him just because he was a 'Fed".

Whoever killed him blatantly displayed his body. They took the time to set his body up in a "scene" which is almost serial like in it's staging.
His hands and feet were bound with duct tape, his federal id was taped to his head and shoulder area. His clothes were found in his truck, only 50 yards away.

Whoever killed him not only wanted him to be found quickly, they are trying to send a message by staging (displaying) his body.
The cause of death is asphyxiation, yet they don't know if that occured at the scene where he was found or elsewhere. (Secondary or Primary crime scene?)

If he was killed elsewhere, someone would have had to drive his truck and then get back to where they came from, which would lead me to believe that they had a ride unless they were able to fit a motorcycle or quad 4 wheeler or dirtbike into the bed of his truck, then wipe it clean to provide a means of getaway.
So unless they did that, the killer might have an accomplice.

Did LE check for all terrain vehicle tracks near the area where the truck was found?
His clothes were found in the bed of the truck; were they folded? screwn about?
The killer knew enough not to take the laptop or truck, either of which could be tracked to them via IP or GPS. So they had knowledge of that.

I would rule out an accident or suicide, as the duct tape on both his hands and legs, rope around neck, ID taped to head/shoulder area and writing on chest would lead away from that.
Plus i doubt he would have picked a spot in a dangerous rural area with no tolerance for homosexuality to masturbate from a tree.

Which leaves murder as the only reason for his death.
Do we know if LE has got any physical evidence DNA, prints, fibers, etc from the body or scene?

 

[lizzybeth]

I'm not sure Mr. Sparkman would have been flamboyant, if gay. The Cub Scouts usually kick someone out if they are gay (or at least I think they do).

I certainly hope LE gets some answers for this man and his son.

 

[mysteriew]

The Census workers ask for your Full Name, Your Race and Ethnicity, The names of all persons living in the household and their ages and relation to the head of the household, If you Own or Rent the home, if the address is not listed on the previous census (every ten years is a Federal Census) with the "now" head of household then a question of when it was purchased or rented is asked, Also, a Federal Census will ask your Income level (not exact amount) and Job Description. Now the next Federal Census, takes place in 2010, a mass questionaire mailing to recorded addresses will be sent out, people are required by law to fill them out and mail them back. So, Mr. Sparkman was not actually performing a census so to speak, of population. I believe Mr. Sparkman was out doing field work to prepare for the upcoming Federal Census. Field workers go out and record addresses and maps to areas that haven't been done so by a previous census. New housing and newly developed areas. Unless, Mr. Sparkman was doing a census for crime statistics, he should not have been interviewing anyone, at this time. I don't believe a crime statistic census is done in the year before a Federal Census, so, that's probably not what Mr. Sparkman was doing. Field workers, now record GPS coordinance on their laptops, while in their vehicles, also inputting the street address of each home or business, if that address is displayed at street level, there's really no reason for a field worker to leave their vehicle, some even use binoculars to read the numbers on buildings.

I believe Mr. Sparkman came up on some type of crime and he was a witness that had to be eliminated, the way that he was displayed, was just for shock value and to throw off the Investigators. That's my honest speculation!!

My sympathies and prayers are with Mr. Sparkmans loved ones.

Ok from your description I am thinking about the presurvey, that he might be riding around on backroads, possibly parking along the side at times, sitting and working on his computer right? How long do you think he would be in one area?

Assuming that someone in the neighborhood is operating a meth lab, MJ farm or moonshine op then I would assume they may be a bit paranoid. They look out the window and see this guy sitting in a vehicle parked outside their property. He isn't doing anything but sitting there, his head a little down maybe looking around once in a while. I don't run any illegals, but that might make me suspicious. To a paranoid illegal operator I am sure that would make them really suspicious. They are going to check him out and they won't necessarily believe the census story he gives them. So they are going to have to put some type of pressure on him to get their questions answered. Once they apply the pressure, then they are committed. They assaulted a fed, they know they are going to prison. Investigation of an assault means their illegal op is going to found out. They feel they don't have a choice, they had to kill him once they started.

 

[mysteriew]

There is so much talk about him being killed since he was working for the government, possibly stumbling across a pot field, or meth lab, moonshine making.
Any of those scenarios i think would have resulted in him just being killed; most likely shot and buried. There would be no reason to leave him naked aside from socks hanging from a tree with "fed" scrawled on his chest.

Drug runners won't bother to undress and write on their victims, or go to the trouble to display them. They would shoot them and then dispose of the body most likely out of view, while getting rid of the truck. Maybe if they wanted to make a point they'd put a "sign" of some sort on the victim, however they wouldn't undress them. Neither would antigovernment individuals go through the trouble of undressing him if they killed him just because he was a 'Fed".

Whoever killed him blatantly displayed his body. They took the time to set his body up in a "scene" which is almost serial like in it's staging.
His hands and feet were bound with duct tape, his federal id was taped to his head and shoulder area. His clothes were found in his truck, only 50 yards away.

Whoever killed him not only wanted him to be found quickly, they are trying to send a message by staging (displaying) his body.
The cause of death is asphyxiation, yet they don't know if that occured at the scene where he was found or elsewhere. (Secondary or Primary crime scene?)

If he was killed elsewhere, someone would have had to drive his truck and then get back to where they came from, which would lead me to believe that they had a ride unless they were able to fit a motorcycle or quad 4 wheeler or dirtbike into the bed of his truck, then wipe it clean to provide a means of getaway.
So unless they did that, the killer might have an accomplice.

Did LE check for all terrain vehicle tracks near the area where the truck was found?
His clothes were found in the bed of the truck; were they folded? screwn about?
The killer knew enough not to take the laptop or truck, either of which could be tracked to them via IP or GPS. So they had knowledge of that.

I would rule out an accident or suicide, as the duct tape on both his hands and legs, rope around neck, ID taped to head/shoulder area and writing on chest would lead away from that.
Plus i doubt he would have picked a spot in a dangerous rural area with no tolerance for homosexuality to masturbate from a tree.

Which leaves murder as the only reason for his death.
Do we know if LE has got any physical evidence DNA, prints, fibers, etc from the body or scene?

You make a strong theory. I can agree with many of your points, and esp. the one about doubting that he would pick this area for a homosexual tryst or to play around in an autoerotic scenario.

The part of why he was stripped though I am not so sure about. I am not so sure that they stripped him. I think they made him strip himself. Part of the humiliation, questioning that they may have put him through.

 

[kittenish]

Sorry if this has already been posted, the following is snipped from this article:

http://www2.tbo.com/content/2009/se...-had-local-ties-boy-scout-lead/news-breaking/

While the nation fixates on the mysterious nature of Sparkman's death, area Scout leaders remembered a man they once knew as "Fe Fe," for his poodle-like curls.

Sparkman earned the nickname while serving as equipment manager for the football team at Vanderbilt University. He had "Fe Fe" on his license tag when he lived in Florida, friends recalled. After he became a professional Scout, he changed the tag to "Eagle 4."

Is it possible that his chest said something along the lines of Fe Fe, his nickname? Obviously that would insinuate that it was someone close to him.

I think this is maybe unlikely, considering the ID found taped to him.

 

[MeoW333]

Is it possible that his chest said something along the lines of Fe Fe, his nickname? Obviously that would insinuate that it was someone close to him.

I think this is maybe unlikely, considering the ID found taped to him.

The ID taped to him made it really easy for him to be identified, it almost seem like a military style thing to do, as in when soldiers die, their tags are placed on them.. (they usually are on already, either on their chest, etc)..
This guy was hanging so they taped the ID to his right side of head/neck

 

[lizzybeth]

MeoW333, gay leaders aren't allowed in the Boy Scouts, so IF he was gay, then he obviously wasn't flamboyant.

http://archives.cnn.com/2000/LAW/06/28/scotus.gay.boyscouts/

Could Mr. Sparkman have been gay, someone in the Scouts found out and did this? That might account for leaving the ID tag, like in the military.

I know I'm probably grabbing at straws. There's nothing in the information that we've been given that says Mr. Sparkman was gay. I just don't see someone involved with a meth lab or weed doing something in this manner.

 

[MeoW333]

MeoW333, gay leaders aren't allowed in the Boy Scouts, so IF he was gay, then he obviously wasn't flamboyant.

http://archives.cnn.com/2000/LAW/06/28/scotus.gay.boyscouts/

Could Mr. Sparkman have been gay, someone in the Scouts found out and did this? That might account for leaving the ID tag, like in the military.

I know I'm probably grabbing at straws. There's nothing in the information that we've been given that says Mr. Sparkman was gay. I just don't see someone involved with a meth lab or weed doing something in this manner.

More so as in if he had any very slight tendencies that would have given him away to someone who would either assume or have gaydar.
If he was killed due to hate crime for being gay, then i would think the killers have issues with their own sexuality.. that was the angle i was trying to get at.

I don't see drug/gun/meth/moonshine runners as doing something like this either, i don't think they would have posed his body the way it was, especially naked. The crime has a sexual angle to it, and i can't quite seem to nail it down... it's a sexual/humilation angle (as Mysterview put the humilation part).
I would if he did stumble across illegal activity they would have questioned him as to what he knew and then just killed him. I'm sure he would have answered their questions without them having to make him strip naked to do it. That's why it doesn't seem to fit. It would have been more routine a killing, i don't think they'd display him out like that.
He was displayed like a serial killer would do to evoke attention from people. Whoever killed him is trying to send a type of message, although exactly what i'm not sure..

It is true the information that we've got doesn't say he was gay, however it doesn't say he was straight. We know he never married, has no exwife, ex girlfriend, girlfriend in the picture.
He alone adopted his son, whom he raised since birth.
He also didn't mind the nickname FeFe and embraced it on his license plate until boy scouts when he changed it to eagle.
If he joined scouts when his son did, i'm sure he went to lengths to cover up that he was gay if he really was gay. He wouldn't want his son to have to face controversy and kids and adults as well can be mean..

 

[tater]

I have questions about what he was doing before coming to KY. What was his life like before becoming a "professional scout"? I hate to say but I have already asked why he wanted to be around kids so much both in BSA or as a teacher. What is that all about anyway? He spent two years getting a teaching degree (what degree did he have from Vanderbilt?) to work part time at an after school program? He adopted a child? Where has this child been living? Now the son says he can't pay the mortgage on the house and is thinking of moving back to London KY to get a job? There's a back story to this. Just the fact the deceased was called "fe fe" for his poodle curls doesn't sound right. I have asked before and realize no one here is going to know but keep your ears out - were his socks clean? that is a sure sign he walked around with his shoes off if they are covered with debris. if clean, somebody took his shoes off at the scene. Reports were his clothing was in the truck bed, what about shoes?

The census workers have been by here doing what they called "mapping". Since the last census a 911 system was instituted and every road had to had a street name. We went from RFD to a fancy sounding avenue. I assume that is part of the work he may have been doing. Verifying what the new address is.

 

[MeoW333]

I have questions about what he was doing before coming to KY. What was his life like before becoming a "professional scout"? I hate to say but I have already asked why he wanted to be around kids so much both in BSA or as a teacher. What is that all about anyway? He spent two years getting a teaching degree (what degree did he have from Vanderbilt?) to work part time at an after school program? He adopted a child? Where has this child been living? Now the son says he can't pay the mortgage on the house and is thinking of moving back to London KY to get a job? There's a back story to this. Just the fact the deceased was called "fe fe" for his poodle curls doesn't sound right. I have asked before and realize no one here is going to know but keep your ears out - were his socks clean? that is a sure sign he walked around with his shoes off if they are covered with debris. if clean, somebody took his shoes off at the scene. Reports were his clothing was in the truck bed, what about shoes?

The census workers have been by here doing what they called "mapping". Since the last census a 911 system was instituted and every road had to had a street name. We went from RFD to a fancy sounding avenue. I assume that is part of the work he may have been doing. Verifying what the new address is.

All these are very good questions that i wish we had the answers to..
If his socks were dirty, what part of the socks? The dirt would be on the top of the socks on (top of toe area) or bottom depending if he were dragged and which way he was facing if he were dragged to that spot. If there were 2 people involved, the may both have been able to carry him completely, thus may not leave dirt on socks.
I'm curious as to whether or not he had any defensive wounds, dna under fingernails, etc as well..

I think the jobs he got around children is what is leading to the pedophile rumors around the web, not to mention "FeFe" and his poodle curls nickname.

Adopting a son, well he could be gay (never married) and wanted a child of his own. Or he could be straight and never found the right woman, never married and wanted a child of his own, however i really do think he was gay.
Not that his sexuality matters in general, however it would matter if it were a hate crime against him being a homosexual.

 

[Soulmagent]

They Just released his body yesterday. That is a long time isnt it? 7 days shy of a full month.http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5jbzG_BlkG2Hfc818EPRRn1bBlP6gD9B5N5M04

 

[MeoW333]

http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5jbzG_BlkG2Hfc818EPRRn1bBlP6gD9B5PF5G3

"Josh Sparkman said police had released his father's pickup truck, which was found at the scene, and he is now driving it. Although he says police have told him nothing, he remains certain the death was a homicide.
He said many things, including a census laptop and personal items like his grandfather's wedding ring, were missing from the truck and were not on a list of potential evidence that investigators kept. State police Capt. Lisa Rudzinski confirmed the laptop was not found in the truck but declined to comment on the other items."

..okay so this is what confuses me, earlier articles mention that a laptop wasn't stolen. So was Sparkman traveling with 2 different laptops, his personal one and then also maybe the census one? I am thinking maybe he traveled with one laptop, that of which the Capt & LE are keeping as evidence. If the Laptop wasn't found in the truck, then where was it found?

Random question, did Sparkman have an life insurance policy? If so, in an event like this who would the pay off go to?
The police are certainly keeping mum about this, not even telling Sparkman's son anything.. seems they should be working with the son as he's saying other items are missing.

 

[lizzybeth]

Jog my memory please, did the son have an alibi for where he was at the time that they believe his father was murdered?

 

[MeoW333]

Jog my memory please, did the son have an alibi for where he was at the time that they believe his father was murdered?

I don't recall if they mentioned the son having an alibi at all; i did come across an article:

"Josh wants to have a memorial service for his father, but says he is broke. He told the Associated Press that his father's truck was released to him, but his father's laptop and grandfather's wedding ring are missing. The police confirmed that the laptop had not been found in the truck. Josh also said that the truck was "ransacked," which was evidence to him that his father was murdered. Josh has expressed frustration that the investigators had not ruled out suicide or an accident."
http://www.digitaljournal.com/article/280147

The only things i come across with his son, Josh, is about Josh pushing that it is a homicide. I may have missed it somewhere though..

Then we have this article that mentions that when his body was found, his laptop was seen inside his truck..

"A festive family get together was soon stopped cold, as the group happened upon the body of Bill Sparkman hanged from a tree with a noose, gagged, with his hands and feet bound with duct tape. And in an eerie twist, duct tape covered Sparkman’s eyes, and was coiled around his neck, securing some sort of identification tag.
Sparkman’s truck was spotted nearby with his computer still inside.
“His tailgate was down.” “I thought he could have been killed somewhere else and brought there and hanged up for display, or they actually could have killed him right there. It was a bad, bad scene,” Wilson told the Associated Press."
http://chattahbox.com/us/2009/09/26/mystery-deepens-census-worker-was-nude-bound-and-gagged/

There are two different articles with conflicting information. I don't know if it's bad reporting on part of the interview with the son, who claims the laptop is still missing or what..

It had been 2 weeks until Sparkman's body was discovered. Did any of his family question where he was for those 2 weeks or make any attempts to reach him? Do we have any reports of his son reporting him missing during that time, or would it have been common for him to go 2 weeks without talking to his father?

Here's another article with a picture of his son, Josh, who is 20 years old now. It's a 5 page article, however worth the read! The whole article brings up a lot of good points, and local opinions as well!
http://www.courier-journal.com/arti...ous+death+leaves+son+seeking+truth+in+Clay+Co.


“This is not a normal thing to happen in Clay County,” said James Garrison, Clay County's Judge-Executive from 1994 to 2006. “You have to offend our people pretty bad for someone to want to kill you.”
And if a drug trafficker was involved, they would most likely dispose of the body where it couldn't be found, said House."
(Page 3 of 5)

"And Kentucky State Police Capt. Lisa Rudzinski, commander of the London post, told The Sentinel Echo of London a report that his computer, which contained his census information, was found in his truck was wrong, too. “We found his truck, but there was no computer in it,” she told the newspaper last week."
(page 5 of 5)

Also, information that Sparkman was married in the past:
"Sparkman said his father adopted him as a single parent when he was about 2, preferring to not begin a new relationship after his divorce but still wanting to raise a child. “I wouldn't be the person I am today if it wasn't for him,” Josh Sparkman said."
(page 5 of 5)

"The resulting media frenzy, with national news outlets arriving from across the country, would have greatly disturbed his father, Josh Sparkman said.
“He was a very private person,” he said, adding that he has been approached by numerous media organizations, including the Washington Post and Good Morning America, which offered to fly him to New York. “My dad would absolutely hate it if I did that.”
(page 2 of 5)

I'm not sure what to make of this whole case...