WA/Canada - Human feet washing ashore

[docwho3]

The feet were often found in water off the coast in some cases, from what I read in one of the linked articles, or were where they probably washed up to shore from the water so I am wondering if we are speaking of a boat or ship crew somewhere that knows exactly what happened but which won't tell because they are involved in something illegal already.

So where do the currents run in those area where the feet were found?
Maybe they will all trace back by currents to a route traveled by a ship.

Edited to add: I just saw that some foot or feet were also found in the fraser river so now i am also wondering how they floated to the coast. How long could they have floated around like that? I mean knowing the possibilities of time for a foot to float might help figure where they went into the water.

". . . A woman's right foot was found on the uninhabited Kirkland Island in the Fraser River in May,. . ."
http://www.cbc.ca/canada/british-columbia/story/2008/06/16/bc-fifth-foot-found.html

Now that opens up more possibilities. Severing feet was done to slaves in the past http://www.roadsideamerica.com/story/11009

but I do not know if that has anything to do with this crime or not. I don't know if the feet are the result of a loss of limb perhaps as a punishment or the result of the taking of life and just part of a disposal of body parts in diverse places. In either case one has to wonder if this was something meant to be found and if so what message was intended and who was it for?

 

[Mazama]

I used to live on Vancouver Island, it is a hot spot for human smuggling. Makes me wonder if these feet were from smuggled individuals who died in transit and whose remains were then cut up or if this is a gang thing. Victoria which is on Vancouver Island, like other Canadian cities, has a large gang problem...many of them being Asian gangs. Any thoughts on this?

 

[BeavisMom62]

They were from the movie series "Deadliest Catch!"

Here we go again! Gideon, did you read the beginning of this thread? It was pretty funny but ended up in the parking lot. I'm not trying to continue the "joke" but it is sorta funny. I thought all (five) of the feet were right feet except the latest one, which was a left foot?! I don't know how this could be anything but deliberate.

 

[Kiki]

I have some more ideas.

no - i would highly doubt that. i wouldn't even think that students who are taking anatomy classes where they get their own cadavars could do that... you are NOT allowed to mutilate a corpse!

Thanks Pedinurse. I don't work in the medical field so know nothing about it. If it is students they may not have mutilated the bodies themselves but may have access to donated body parts. I imagine that medical schools have a collection of different body parts in storage for anatomy lessons? I wonder how difficult it would be for a medical student to steal donated body parts? I've read that amputated limbs not used in research are incinerated by hospitals along with other medical waste. Could it be that some hospital worker involved in this process has a really sick sense of humour? Decomposition could have occured after rather than before they were put in the water. Perhaps the police could test the DNA of recent amputees from nearby hospitals and ask medical schools that keep body parts to check there are no missing feet.

Could it be a funeral home worker who actually thought this would be funny or who has some form of mental illness? Before the funeral or between the funeral and the burial/cremation (which can sometimes be a day or days later) I don't imagine it would be difficult to sever a foot without anyone knowing. I don't know anything about the operation of funeral parlours so I could be wrong about that.

There is also the possibility of this being some sort of religious ritual. I remember reading a few years that there was the torso of a young African boy found in the Thames who was never identified and police believed he was murdered as part of a ritual. If that is the case here the rest of the victims' remains could been burned. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Adam_%28unsolved_Thames_murder_case)

I really really hope it is all just a prank and the people these limbs come from are alive and healthy. It would be horrible to think there is a killer torturing his victims and amputating their feet.

 

[Paladin]

News title should have been:

"6th severed foot found, police stumped."

Woka woka woka!

 

[ceeaura]

My deepest respect for all my dear WS friends, but this is my third time asking- does anyone on here watch DEXTER??

I swear, it's too freaky, and perhaps, relevant.. except for the climate

I love watching Dexter and when I heard about the feet washing ashore the show popped into my head.

Very creepy

 

[Alta]

WHAT WE KNOW
- Since last August, six feet clad in running shoes have washed ashore along B.C.'s South Coast from Campbell River to Ladner.
- Five are right feet, one is a left. Two of the right feet were men's size 12. The sixth looks like a men's size 10.
- The first two feet belonged to men. The shoes in the third and sixth cases appeared to be men's, and the fourth looked like a woman's sneaker.
- DNA profiles of the first three feet don't match profiles of missing people.
- There is no evidence any of the first four feet were forcibly removed.
- As of August 2007, the RCMP had received reports of 2,317 people who were missing in B.C. for a period of at least 30 days.

WHAT WE DON'T KNOW
- Why only feet are washing ashore.
- Whether the one left foot matches any of the five right feet.
- Whether any of the feet's original owners fell victim to foul play.
- The height, race and age of those involved.
- How long the feet were in the water.
- Whether the fifth foot belonged to a man or a woman.

LINK

 

[SuziQ]

This is the lead story on CNN this morning. Does anyone have an idea what paper is investigating missing men in the area? Also another article that I don't have a link to said LE is handling this as a criminal investigation. I understand the theory of water drift would take the feet to a certain area. It's not like it's always happened though. Why aren't other beaches in the world experiencing the same phenomena?

http://www.cnn.com/2008/CRIME/06/18/canada.feet/index.html

(snip)
The mystery has caused a stir and led to many rumors, locals say. One newspaper has began investigating a rash of young men who have gone missing in the area.
Some have wondered whether the feet could belong to five men who were in a plane that crashed three years ago in the waterway where the feet were found.
Some of those men's relatives were at the Campbell River site on Wednesday.
"It's a constant reminder every time, from the time the first foot washed up," said Kirsten Stevens, whose husband, Dave, died in the crash. Although her husband's body was located, Stevens said, the other men's relatives still are awaiting answers. They never recovered their loved ones' remains.
"It reopens the wound every single time," she said.

 

[SuziQ]

Here is a link to the CNN video. Towards the end, there is a photo shown of a one of the feet in a shoe sitting on a dock.

http://www.cnn.com/2008/CRIME/06/18/canada.feet/index.html#cnnSTCVideo

 

[SuziQ]

40 or so missing men in recent months? That's a high number.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2008/jun/18/internationalcrime.canada?gusrc=rss&feed=worldnews

(snip)
Vancouver residents have their own theories, which they have been sharing with their local newspaper. "We have a serial killer out there," suggests one blogger, asking why no one is considering what might have happened to 40 or so young men who have gone missing locally in recent months. Another theory is that biker gangs are "taking people, killing them, sawing them up and dropping them in the water".

 

[SuziQ]

I'm having Deja Vu. Sounds like the smiley face cases.

http://www.cbc.ca/canada/british-columbia/story/2008/06/13/bc-missing-men-families.html?ref=rss

(snips)
Police have not drawn any link in these six missing cases but John Kahler's sister, Lori, said they bear striking similarities because the men all were relatively young, athletic and good looking.

The most recent cases reported to the province's missing persons unit include:

• June 9: Daniel Bouchard, 20, of White Rock disappeared after leaving a local pub.
• April 10: Michael Scullion, 30, of Chilliwack disappeared in Agassiz.
• March 19: Kellen McElwee, 25, of Burnaby was last seen outside a Langley restaurant.
• Jan. 1: Derek Kelly, 32, of Langley vanished near Bridge Lake.
• Nov. 2, 2007: John Kahler, 29, was last seen at a four-by-four truck rally at Stave Lake.
• June 1: Bryan Braumberger, 18, disappeared somewhere near the Coquitlam and New Westminster boundary.

 

[SuziQ]

Isn't this the same straight the feet were found in?

Interactive Map: Missing Young Men fom the Lower Mainland

Last update: 06/13/08
Some of the males under 35 from the Lower Mainland reported missing since May 2007.
Instructions: Click on the markers in the map or in the list to the right for more information. Drag the map to look around or zoom in and out to get a closer look.

http://www.cbc.ca/bc/features/missing-men/

 

[Blink34]

This is the lead story on CNN this morning. Does anyone have an idea what paper is investigating missing men in the area? Also another article that I don't have a link to said LE is handling this as a criminal investigation. I understand the theory of water drift would take the feet to a certain area. It's not like it's always happened though. Why aren't other beaches in the world experiencing the same phenomena?

http://www.cnn.com/2008/CRIME/06/18/canada.feet/index.html

(snip)
The mystery has caused a stir and led to many rumors, locals say. One newspaper has began investigating a rash of young men who have gone missing in the area.
Some have wondered whether the feet could belong to five men who were in a plane that crashed three years ago in the waterway where the feet were found.
Some of those men's relatives were at the Campbell River site on Wednesday.
"It's a constant reminder every time, from the time the first foot washed up," said Kirsten Stevens, whose husband, Dave, died in the crash. Although her husband's body was located, Stevens said, the other men's relatives still are awaiting answers. They never recovered their loved ones' remains.
"It reopens the wound every single time," she said.

SUz-
you have found more than I could to date- Great work.
This case has troubled me from the first time I read it in the parking lot. I do not think it is a prank, I think , going out on my infamous limb here, this
case is going to breed similar "smells" to our college men deaths as well.
I also think it is happening in the UK and Belgium, but with limited coverage. They do not cover these stories as we do, and in general, release almost no information until/ or if/ a case is solved.

 

[gaia227]

I am glad to see that finally this is garnering international attention. I have seen countless feet jokes(including the rather tasteless on today in the Daily Mail) but I think it is becoming obvious this is not a funny situation. There are five, possibly six victims all with families wanting answers. Admittedly it is very intriguing and I am beginning to believe that BC has a serial killer in their midst and the RCMP have 6 of his victims feet.
There are just too many similarites between the men who have gone missing in BC and to have that many missing men in one province is highly unusual and suspect. Hopefully LE see's the connections and are taking them seriously.

 

[SuziQ]

Good morning to you Blink! I have found quite a bit this morning. Just not sure I should put it all here. There's got to be a thread for these guys here. I haven't looked yet. Post a link if you have it handy. TIA.

I'll put one last link here and later figure out where to put the missing men info. Unless people want it here? Let me know.

http://www.canada.com/vancouvercourier/news/story.html?id=26d28beb-88d2-43c2-8ccd-3e742db307f6&p=1

Dozens of young, healthy men have mysteriously vanished in southwestern B.C. in recent years. Many of their families suspect the disappearances are connected--police say no. (more at link)

 

[GideonsTrumpet]

That is fine Beavis-I only joined last night. Someone sure has a foot fetish, number one obvious-and the size alone indicates pretty big guys. Usually a size 12 is a good 6'2 to 6'4 male and size 10 is still pretty much up there with 6 foot tall. I am not aware of many people being buried with running shoes-so it really does appear deliberate. Also like someone wants to get caught. I think they will keep finding feet until the person is caught. At first I did think a boating accident-at best it is homeless dudes since no one of importance seems to be missing. Homeless also wear sneakers and are most vunerable to a whack job. They can sure tell if it is post mortum.

 

[GideonsTrumpet]

Well, the theory it was from a plane crash will sure dissapoint who is doing it. They probably find that insulting and will do something soon to prove it is not some "plane."

 

[SuziQ]

Well, the theory it was from a plane crash will sure dissapoint who is doing it. They probably find that insulting and will do something soon to prove it is not some "plane."

He may already be trying to prove it. Suddenly it's a right foot washing up and a witness statement indicate it was a clean cut, not a seperation. And she indicated on the CNN video that it did not look like it was in the water very long. It's occured to me that if there is a serial killer out there, that the foot washing up was not his initial intention. It got so much press though it's now a game.

 

[SuziQ]

http://www.cnn.com/2008/CRIME/06/19/canada.feet/index.html

(snip)
While waiting for police, Malone said, she walked to the beach with the woman and saw it for herself.
"You could see the foot that's inside the running shoe," she said. "The leg bones were coming out of the running shoe about 3 to 4 inches. There were no tissues or anything attached."
She said seaweed was wrapped around the top of the running shoe, making it hard to tell whether any tissue was inside the shoe. But she said the foot appeared to have been deliberately severed, as the bones "had been cut clean across."
The foot was the sixth discovered on shorelines in the area since August, according to local police and media reports. Another foot -- a left foot still in a shoe -- was found Monday on the shore of Westham Island, south of Vancouver. Police said it was taken to a coroner for DNA testing.

 

[ceeaura]

That is fine Beavis-I only joined last night. Someone sure has a foot fetish, number one obvious-and the size alone indicates pretty big guys. Usually a size 12 is a good 6'2 to 6'4 male and size 10 is still pretty much up there with 6 foot tall. I am not aware of many people being buried with running shoes-so it really does appear deliberate. Also like someone wants to get caught. I think they will keep finding feet until the person is caught. At first I did think a boating accident-at best it is homeless dudes since no one of importance seems to be missing. Homeless also wear sneakers and are most vunerable to a whack job. They can sure tell if it is post mortum.

Just wanted to say my husband is 6'3 and wears a 10 and a half shoe.For him to be so tall he has little feet.My BIL is like 6'2 and wears a 15

I sure hope they get some answers soon.Its creepy and scary.