Bone fragments will be challenging to identify

DREXEL, Mo. – It would be difficult to identify victims from bone fragments found in a rural backyard unless a family member came forward with DNA for comparison, officials said Monday as investigators concluded the search for evidence.

Michael Shaver, 33, claims to have killed seven people and scattered their burned bone fragments around his backyard. He is charged with a single count of first-degree murder.

Officials face the task of prosecuting Shaver without the name of a victim. The murder charge names “John Doe.”

Officers said they found more than 50 pieces of evidence, including a hatchet, after searching Shaver’s yard Aug. 21. Officers continued to search the next day and recovered 35 bone fragments and a tooth.

As they finished their search Monday, investigators wouldn’t say how many bone fragments have been found in total.

Forensic anthropologist Michael Finnegan of Kansas State University said last week that preliminary tests indicate the fragments came from at least two people. Conclusive tests will take a couple of weeks, authorities said.