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The Spokesman-Review Newspaper
Spokane, Washington  Est. May 19, 1883

Suspect Still Not Found In Campground Murder 70-Year-Old Man Discovered Bludgeoned To Death

Associated Press

Authorities continued their search on Friday for a man wanted for questioning in the slaying of a 70-year-old man found bludgeoned to death at a Sawtooth National Forest campground.

Other campers told investigators the clean-shaven white man in his 50s - described as about 5 feet 7 inches tall and 175 pounds with a dark complexion and short, dark hair - may have been camping with the victim.

“At this point he’s got to be considered a suspect,” Cassia County Sheriff Billy Crystal said. “It may not turn out that way, but that’s the way we have to look at him right now.”

Campers said he was wearing a military field jacket, tan baseball cap and a green backpack. They told police the man and the victim were seen together in a recreational vehicle at the Schipper campground south of Hansen.

Police had not released the victim’s name, but Crystal said the man had an identification card from San Francisco’s mass-transit system and the name was traced to a California driver’s license.

Crystal said the RV had Michigan license plates, but they were not registered to that vehicle.

The slain man, who apparently was beaten in the head with a tire iron, was balding with white hair and a long white beard. Campers said he usually wore just a pair of shorts.

The Schipper campground is on Rock Creek Road, which leads from Hansen into the South Hills.

Crystal said his office was contacted late Wednesday after campers called Twin Falls County authorities to report finding blood around the campsite.

Deputies from both counties and state detectives searched the area. About midday Thursday, a sheep herder told detectives he had seen the body about half a mile downstream from the campsite.

Police freed the body from an overhanging branch in the creek. An autopsy indicated the wounds were probably inflicted with a tire iron.

Sawtooth National Forest officials closed the Schipper campground as police continued their investigation. Crystal said weekend campers should not be in any danger, but everyone should look out for anyone fitting the suspect’s description.

“I don’t want to push any panic buttons and tell everyone they shouldn’t go camping,” he said. “But they should be careful.”