Two sought after human hand found in pond
ELGIN, Ore. (AP) - Police are seeking two persons of interest in the death of an Eastern Oregon woman whose hand was found in an Elgin pond last week.
Capt. Craig Ward of the Union County Sheriff's Office said investigators want to speak with Frank Scaramuzzi, a man described as both a roommate and a sometimes boyfriend of 51-year-old Shannon McKillop.
The other person of interest is Jeremiah Johnston, an Elgin resident reported missing several weeks ago. The captain did not describe either man as a suspect.
"They are two people we would like to speak with," he said.
Other parts of McKillop's dismembered body have been recovered this week in and near a pond along Pumpkin Ridge Road. Since the remains were found, rumors have spread that other people are missing and may have been killed.
Ward said Friday that McKillop's death is the only one being investigated.
"We have recovered one set of remains," Ward said. "At this point we have no indication there is a serial killer putting the public at risk."
The state medical examiner's office identified McKillop as the victim through fingerprints, Ward said. He said the time of the murder has not been determined, but added that McKillop had been dead for well under a year.
Ward said a search warrant had been executed at McKillop's Elgin residence, and may help investigators determine if the murder happened at the pond or elsewhere.
McKillop was also known as Shannon Marie Sloan. According to a death notice posted in Friday's (La Grande) Observer newspaper, she is survived by two daughters and had four grandchildren.
Ward said the sheriff's office has been flooded with calls from people wanting to contribute information.
"We don't lack any input," he said. "The problem is, 90 percent of what we're getting is spurious."
(Copyright 2009 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
