The San Joaquin County Sheriff’s Office released photos in connection with a cold case from the 1980s, in an effort to solve it with help from the public.

At about 7 a.m. on April 22, 1982, a body was discovered in an almond orchard near South French Camp and East Jacktone roads east of Lathrop. Deputies found the remains of a nude man whose hands, feet and head were missing and have never been recovered.  

The victim is white and believed to have been between the ages of 22 and 26. He was between 5 feet 11 inches tall and 6 feet 1 inches tall, weighing around 170 to 185 pounds.  

Most notably, the man had two distinctive tattoos: a colored snakehead on his right outer wrist and a blue ink wizard on his left inner wrist. The Sheriff’s Office released images of the tattoos.  

Authorities have the victim’s DNA on file and are looking for possible family members.  

Anyone who thinks that they may know who this man is should contact the San Joaquin County Sheriff’s Office at (209) 468-4400.  

Katy St. Clair got her start in journalism by working in the classifieds department at the East Bay Express during the height of alt weeklies, then sweet talked her way into becoming staff writer, submissions editor, and music editor. She has been a columnist in the East Bay Express, SF Weekly, and the San Francisco Examiner. Starting in 2015, she begrudgingly scaled the inverted pyramid at dailies such as the Vallejo Times-Herald, The Vacaville Reporter, and the Daily Republic. She has her own independent news site and blog that covers the delightfully dysfunctional town of Vallejo, California, where she also collaborates with the investigative team at Open Vallejo. A passionate advocate for people with developmental disabilities, she serves on both the Board of the Arc of Solano and the Arc of California. She lives in Vallejo.