The Mystery At Webb Hill

September 20, 2004 10:47 AM

The Mystery At Webb Hill - In the waning daylight hours of December 7, 1998, three teenage boys, hiking near Webb Hill, St. George, Utah, saw a shirt sleeve flapping in the wind near the top of the hill. Their parents had warned them not to attempt hiking the sheer red rock cliffs. What they discovered inside a stone-walled chamber was the skeletonized remains of a 16 year old male. Positive identification of this young man has eluded investigators for nearly five years. Maybe you can help.
posted by mr_crash_davis (17 comments total)

Is it just a blurry jpg or is that a highway in the background, putting the cave within a mile or two of civilization? I'd gotten the impression, at first, that he was lost somewhere deep into the wilderness.
posted by dhoyt at 11:00 AM on September 20, 2004

EncyclopediaBrownFilter.
posted by Ty Webb at 11:16 AM on September 20, 2004

I recently read (probably here) about underground/amateur sleuths around the country/world working on unsolved cases as a hobby. Fascinating stuff, mr_crash_davis. Nice find.
posted by shoepal at 11:33 AM on September 20, 2004

I'd gotten the impression, at first, that he was lost somewhere deep into the wilderness.

86 years ago, that might've been wilderness.
posted by grabbingsand at 11:37 AM on September 20, 2004

Very cool, crash. I love this sort of thing. Poor kid.

Bit more info here. And shoepal, there are a few different online forums where people do that, two I know of are Crime & Justice (which seems to be pretty well-respected, even by professionals) and Websleuths.
posted by biscotti at 11:39 AM on September 20, 2004

It's Dick Cheney! Everyone knows that the Dick Cheney we see on TV is actually an evil robot cyborg sent here to destroy the world.
posted by camworld at 11:47 AM on September 20, 2004

Is it just a blurry jpg or is that a highway in the background, putting the cave within a mile or two of civilization?

What's really sad is the cell phone tower not 100 ft. from the cave, and it still took some kids just stumbling across this kid 90 years later. Poor kid indeed. I hope this gets at least some closure.
posted by Pollomacho at 11:53 AM on September 20, 2004

Somebody should send this link to O.J. as a model of how a private citizen can conduct an investigation. It seems much more efficient than just exploring golf courses for clues.
posted by stupidsexyFlanders at 12:06 PM on September 20, 2004

I recently read (probably here) about underground/amateur sleuths around the country/world working on unsolved cases as a hobby. Fascinating stuff, mr_crash_davis. Nice find.
posted by shoepal at 11:33 AM PST on September 20


There was an article in a recent issue of Wired.
posted by padraigin at 12:07 PM on September 20, 2004

After sinking a putt, OJ usually checks the cup just to make sure the "real killers" are not hiding in there.
posted by dhoyt at 12:16 PM on September 20, 2004

EncyclopediaBrownFilter.

Keep it up, Bugs Meaney, and see what happens.
posted by yerfatma at 12:23 PM on September 20, 2004

Toward the back wall of the clubhouse, there hung a banner made from an old bedsheet, bearing the word "TIGERS" in paint. Upon further examination, it became appearent the word "TIGERS" had been crossed out, and the word "SPELUNKERS" had been written above the lettering whch had previously spelled "TIGERS".

(A spelunker is a person who spends much of their time exploring the insides of caves.)
posted by Smart Dalek at 12:44 PM on September 20, 2004

From the glowingly positive comments here, maybe I'm the only one, but I don't get it. Why spend all this effort trying to solve the "mystery" of someone who apparently died of the flu 90 years ago? Couldn't this effort be more appropriate exerted on behalf of more recent victims - which would have the advantage that there might be actual criminals to be prosecuted, not to mention an actual victim instead of someone who got the wrong end of a nasty cold?

(Yes, I know. Flu != Cold.)
posted by jacquilynne at 12:51 PM on September 20, 2004

Thanks Padraigin! Much appreciated.
posted by shoepal at 12:57 PM on September 20, 2004

jacqueline: forensics and archeology have a lot more in common than what most people would think. Sometimes, by reviewing cold cases, new improvements in overall crime-investigating techniques can be found, as well as a better means of studing plague characteristics. The human remains could easily have been three or twenty-five years old, and could've opened a lead on a killer very much at large. Or, possibly, an analysis of the scene could've revealed a better means of safeguarding disease than relying upon over-the-counter medication.

(One last thing: Flu != cold caused by other viri; Influenza != far more serious outbreak.)
posted by Smart Dalek at 1:10 PM on September 20, 2004

The Vidocq Society was the first group I ever heard of to use the internet to involve the public in a cold case.
posted by cookie-k at 12:50 AM on September 21, 2004

I'm not sure I understand your one last thing, smart dalek. I was saying != (not equals) to show that I know that influenza and colds are not the same thing, despite my joke, and the fact that popular usage makes them nearly equivalent. You seem to be telling me approximately the same thing.
posted by jacquilynne at 5:17 AM on September 21, 2004