Identified! NM - Silver City, Male w/ distinctive Kona ring, Jan'12 - Todd Hilbers

[CarlK90245]

Remains Found in New Mexico Had Ring Made in Kona

Above: Ring and necklace found with remains.

A sheriff’s department in New Mexico is trying to identify human remains found in January that were accompanied by a piece of jewelry made on the Big Island.

A single bone was found by a hiker Jan. 17 in the remote Gomez Peak area north of Silver City. Analysis of bones found through the help of cadaver dogs indicated they were from a man approximately six feet in height and weighing about 200 pounds. The remains indicated that the man had once had an injury to the right knee that had been surgically repaired with metal screws.

Jewelry found with the remains included a titanium ring made by Hawaii Titanium of Kailua-Kona. The maker’s mark was the inscription “Ti” inside the outline of the Big Island. The ring also was inlaid with koa wood and lapis.

After seeing a photograph of the ring, Jerry Guire, owner of Hawaii Titanium, said it was definitely made in his shop.

Read More:

http://bigislandnow.com/2012/03/12/remains-found-in-new-mexico-had-ring-made-in-kona/

Additional article:
http://www.scsun-news.com/ci_20151930

 

[Irish_Eyes]

A little short, but:

http://www.charleyproject.org/cases/p/pfeiffer_patrick.html

From Doe:

"...several scars on his lower right leg. He has titanium rods and screws inserted in his lower right leg..."

also:

"suffers from depression"

???

 

[Donjeta]

The decedent has screws in both the tibia and the femur but Patrick Pfeiffer is only said to have screws in his lower leg.

He has a screw in the front of the right shin bone (tibia) and in the back of the right thigh bone (femur).

http://www.scsun-news.com/ci_20151930

I'm a bit confused by the article saying that they lacked craniofacial bones (so I assumed no dentals) but then a forensic odontologist excluded the remains as those of David Ristovski, (presumably by dentals?).

 

[Irish_Eyes]

Interesting. Perhaps they have the lower mandible, but not the rest of the skull?

Regarding Patrick I think he had surgical scars on both knees, but only the hardware on the right side. It does say lower leg, but based on where the scar was, I wondered if it could be knee-related and the term lower leg was poorly worded and referring to lower leg as opposed to upper leg nearer to the hip.

In any event, Patrick has a partial dental appliance in the bottom jaw, so presumably, if they do have that to examine, he would be an easy rule in/out. I would think a dental appliance would have been mentioned.

 

[CarlK90245]

According to a post on the vBulletin website, this decedent has been identified as Todd Andrew Hilbers

Cold Case Investigations - View Single Post - Sheriff's Office looking for help in ID'ing skeletal remains

Thank you for the posts that you and othermembers wrote. I was given the link after I received the news about myson being identified. Just reading the caring posts, the informationabout the stones in the necklace, as my son was an avid student of the meaningsof stones, and seeing the ring have been so helpful as I sort through my griefprocess. Suzanna, Todd's mother


Todd Andrew Hilbers - Born in Durham, NC June 17, 1971
died in the Gila National Forest outside Silver City, New Mexico late 2010

The precious son of Suzanna Alexander, younger brother ofScott/Scaughdt Hilbers, and stepson of Lawrence Alexander,
had been struggling with increasing bipolar schizophrenia andalcohol issues for the past several years.
Todd had not been in touch with his family since Thanksgiving of2009.

Tuesday, June 19, 2012 we received a phone call from the Officeof Medical Investigation for the state of New Mexico.
They had been unable to identify some skeletal remains found inJanuary of 2012.
The recent Whitewater-Baldy Complex fire in Gila National Forest uncovereda campsite which was then linked
to the still unknown person found two miles away on a majesticmountain site. With excellent and caring detective work,
Todd was identified on Monday June 18 and the family'sinformation corroborated the police findings.
It is clear that he chose consciously to end his increasinglydifficult life in a place of beauty,
described by the sheriffs' department as a place which made themall stand still in awe.
This would be the perfect place for Todd, who always was at onewith Nature and found the greatest peace in the woods and mountains.

We will remember a man who swam with dolphins and dove fromcliffs in Hawaii,
who danced Nia with amazing grace, snowboarded in back country Colorado,
who was a gifted organic gardener and carpenter, lover ofstones,
maker of ethereal music with his guitar and sang Mick Jagger andPrince with glee,
graduated from RollinsCollege in FL and theHeartwood Institute in CA.
His radiant smile and kindness touched all who met him.
He loved his family deeply, his cousins , aunts and uncles, and Todd was deeplyloved by them.

We will miss this strong gentle giant of a man and the worldwill miss his gifts. In one of his letters I found this -----
"despite how most of us pretend otherwise, all of this isreally a Great Mystery."

If you would like to honor or remember Todd in some way pleasesmile at a homeless person with love,
treat others with kindness as you may not know the pain theycarry behind their smile and donate to causes that protect the beauty ofNature.

He always ended his letters with the Hawaiian"Aloha".
The literal meaning of aloha is “the presence of breath”or “the breath of life.”
Aloha is being a part of all, and all being a part of me.


I miss you Todd, Aloha, mom
(ps. I did not put the large font in, maybe you did?)

 

[Gardenlady]

A fellow Prince fan. . Todd sounds like he was a remarkable man who touched many peoples lives. Wishing peace to his family and friends.

RIP Todd. :rose: