Mystery of skulls in a Florida forest deepens

Mark Potter Correspondent • E-mail

FT. MYERS, Fla. - Investigators in Florida think eight men whose skeletal remains were discovered last spring were murdered. The remains were found in a wooded area just outside downtown Fort Myers.

Police aren't saying how the men died and have stopped short of classifying the murders as the work of a serial killer.

"We believe they met with foul play," says Sgt. Jennifer Soto of the Ft. Myers Police Department. "We believe it was homicide that led them to that area."

So far, only two of the men have been identified. DNA extracted from bone samples was compared to a database of missing persons, identifying two victims as Erik Kohler and John Blevins— transients who disappeared in 1995.

Yesterday, Fort Myers police unveiled facial sculptures of the six unidentified men, recreated from skulls sent to a forensic sculptor in Wyoming. They're hoping someone will recognize them.

"Hopefully there will be something about a jaw line, nose, or a set of the eyes that will spark a memory in family, friends or loved ones," says forensic anthropologist Heather Walsh-Haney, who is involved in the case.

Detectives haven't ruled out the possibility that the men were killed by Florida death-row inmate Daniel Conahan. He's convicted in the strangulation of a drifter in a neighboring county. Conahan denies any involvement in the killings.

For any leads to this case, the Ft. Myers Police Department can be contacted at 239-334-4155.

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