September 5, 2004 in Idaho

Investigators stymied by death of two women

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REXBURG, Idaho — A second autopsy has failed to reveal the cause of death for a reclusive mother and adult daughter found dead in their home — though evidence indicates the daughter died significantly earlier than her mother, officials said.

Police found the badly decomposed bodies of Lorraine Kaneko, 58, and her daughter Laura Kaneko, 33, during a routine welfare check on June 19. Lorraine’s husband and Laura’s father, Kenichi David Kaneko, had apparently been living with the remains for several months, investigators said.

Two autopsies performed so far have ruled out causes of death that would have broken skin and bones or been caused by poison or toxic substances, Madison County Prosecutor Sid Brown said as he released the results Friday.

“There is no evidence they were shot, there is no evidence they were stabbed, there is no evidence they were poisoned,” Brown said.

The second set of autopsies was performed in June by Dr. William Rodriguez, a medical examiner with the Armed Forces Institute of Pathology in Washington, D.C. Rodriguez was called in for the case after the first autopsies performed by a Pocatello pathologist revealed few clues.

Madison County Sheriff Roy Klinger said the bodies have been released to the family, and the women were buried in a private ceremony last week.

But both Brown and Klinger said the investigation would continue.

“We hope to be able to report further progress in the next few months,” Brown said.

Though Kenichi David Kaneko, 64, is still considered a material witness in the case, Magistrate Colin Luke has dismissed the misdemeanor charge he faced of delaying and obstructing a police officer. Kaneko posted a $55,000 bond and was released last Tuesday.

Kaneko, who retired late this spring after years at the Idaho National Engineering and Environmental Laboratory, was taken into custody the same evening the women’s bodies were found in the family’s trailer home. Klinger has said from the beginning that Kaneko was not a suspect in the deaths.

The women became recluses in 1991, after experiencing rifts in their family and in the community. They were rarely seen in public after that.

Brown said that at some point in the next few months, Kaneko will be required to attend a rare special magistrate inquiry hearing. In such hearings, witnesses are called to testify on the record as part of an ongoing investigation, and those who decline to testify may be forced to in exchange for their testimony not being used against them in criminal proceedings.

The hearing will conclude with recommendations on which direction the investigation will take, Brown said.

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