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John Hollenhorst ReportingNew leads and a new theory may help solve an old mystery of a skeleton found in a cave in St. George. There's now a human face for a boy who apparently died alone and forgotten nearly a century ago.
Teenagers found the skeleton five years ago while hiking on Webb Hill in St. George. The bones were in a cave, apparently unnoticed since about the time of World War I. Medical evidence suggests it was a 16-year old boy who died of a lung infection in about 1918.
Why he died in such an out of the-way place is a mystery that's haunted private eye Todd Gabler for years. He and some amateur sleuths took over the investigation from St. George police. Recently, they hired facial reconstruction experts at Louisiana State University to get an idea what the boy looked like.
Todd Gabler: “It’s not just a guess. It’s an informed guess. It’s an educated guess.”
With the assistance of computers, the experts created a clay model directly on the boy's skull. Distinctive features, including a prominent nose, are derived from the skull's bone structure.
Todd Gabler: “What we would like is for people to see this photograph and see some familiarity with a family member, or someone that they know, or a photograph that they’ve seen in a family photo album.”
Now that the mystery boy has a human face it should help investigators pursue a new theory that's emerged. Several St. George residents recently came forward with a story they recalled from early in the last century: A teenage boy mauled by a dog; he recovered, but his face was heavily scarred.
Todd Gabler: “He felt uncomfortable with that disfigurement and was shunned. He essentially just walked away from the community and was never seen again.”
Relatives of the missing boy supposedly still live in the area. Perhaps they'll recognize the reconstructed face. Perhaps their DNA will match up with DNA in the skeleton's teeth. The sleuths hope they're close to a breakthrough in the Mystery at Webb Hill.
