***PLEASE NOTE: The photos in this story could be disturbing for some readers***
On September 21, 2021, a motorist on Highway 101 stopped to walk their dog on the side of the roadway and made a grisly discovery— a badly decomposed body.
Nearly five months later, investigators have determined the body to be that of a man in his twenties, but a detail released via the National Missing and Unidentified Persons System is noteworthy enough to trigger the memory of someone out there: the deceased twenty-something was found wearing women’s clothes.
Adding to the peculiar nature of this John Doe, a book was located near the deceased man entitled The Book of Thoth, written by none other than Alister Crowley, the British occultist who believed in the existence of “magick”, saw sexual experimentation as a tool in exploring an individual’s magical capabilities, and was known to flout the conventional morality of his time.
The specific book is named after the Egyptian god Thoth, who is depicted as having the head of an ibis and was worshiped as the god of the moon, sacred texts, mathematics, the sciences, and magic.
Crowley’s book describes the philosophy and use of a tarot deck Crowley designed known as the “Thoth Tarot” that would become one of the best-selling and most used Tarot decks around the globe.
Mendocino County Sheriff’s Office Captain Greg Van Patten told us a forensic autopsy determined the body was a man but was found wearing women’s clothes.
As per the NamUs database, the majority of the deceased man’s attire was women’s clothing including a women’s black cotton dress, a women’s short sleeve shirt, women’s denim jeans, and women’s blacked-lined leggings. The dead man was also found wearing a dark-colored heavy jacket and a pair of men’s leather mid-rise boots.
Due to the advanced state of decomposition, investigators gathered limited information regarding the individual’s physical appearance. The man is thought to be white, between 22-23 years old, with long, straight, brown hair described as “possibly shoulder-length” and standing between 5’10”-6’4″. Eye color could not be determined.
NamUs states that the body was “not recognizable” and found as a “near-complete or complete skeleton.”
Mendocino County Sheriff’s Office Captain Greg Van Patten told us there is “no known cause of death at this time” and the body’s “teeth were sent off for DNA extraction early October 2021.” Initially, it was reported that the man had come to rest in a homeless encampment, but that information was “not accurate”, Captain Van Patten explained.
Though NamUs describes the location of the deceased man in Willits, it was discovered near the intersection of Highway 101 and State Route 162 under the Arnold Overpass.
Captain Van Patten hoped that DNA analysis will identify him “and then we can work towards determining a timeline of his travels.”
Previous Coverage
Was only a hobo and one more is gone Bob Dylan 1962
Was the death classified as suspicious? Was there a cause of death given?
That state of Decomp makes cause of death hard to determine unless obvious blunt force or gunshot. Some poisons. Sounds like exposure and substance abuse. Not worth the money to look deeper unless they ID the man. He could be famous
Wow, aren’t you just full of love? What if it were someone in your family that had gone missing no matter the circumstances, wouldn’t you want to know?
Possible human trafficking victim? Very sad that a young person went missing and ended up deceased. I’m sure there’s a family somewhere wondering if this is their loved one. If they know about it that is.
Erybodysagangster
What biggots!!!! Obviously this was a female 🙄
How dare you call her a man.
Oh wait….
🙏Prayers for and condolences to the family. It’s a tragic end to this young person’s life. I’m very sorry for your loss….😥💐
Was it a woman or a war that led to the bottle
Laying empty near the head of a wasted old man
I lift my shoes high as I jently step over
Avoiding the stain of his blood and his tears
Yet I’m happy
As I look in the mirror
Just knowing someone’s lower than me
Yet I wonder
If I ever reach bottom
Can a man harvest mercy never planting its seeds
Very interesting poem. However, it completed contradicts previous comments made by you, no? Everyone’s life is worth something. Very sad case.
U acting like you the killer u need to be investigate u sound weird u giving me the vibe that u are the kille
Was the book n the leaves his? Or sum1s that visits the body regularly. It didnt look weather worne enuf 2 match spectical 2 the remains
No one in my family gives a shit.
Cast off, die alone is the American way
Article says a young man was found deceased wearing womans clothing. Is it possible that that was reason enough for someone to attack him? I would hope not but you never know. And this cult, if not a sex cult could someone have hurt him and left the literature behind hoping for it to be found on purpose?
Cause of death and ID are needed before the state will authorize funds to investigate much further
I think every missing person came from somewhere and shouldn’t be forgotten.