Santa Clarita / Antelope Valley : Skeleton Found in Desert Reopens Case of Missing Rancher : Lancaster: Deputies say headless remains found by hikers could be those of Lawrence Kuhn, 83, who vanished in September, 1993.

A decapitated skeleton found in the Lancaster desert this week could be the remains of Lawrence Kuhn, an 83-year-old rancher who disappeared 16 months ago from the remote mountain town of Three Points, authorities said Friday.

Homicide investigators are waiting for a coroner’s report to determine the age, sex and identity of the remains, but the officials say there is a “definite possibility” they may be Kuhn’s bones.

“Mr. Kuhn was reported missing in late 1993, and he was from the Antelope Valley,” said Sheriff’s Lt. Joe Brown. “It’s possible that it’s him, or it could be any number of others.”

Authorities said it could take weeks before the bones are identified. An anthropologist will be brought in to assist with the autopsy.

Ed and Melody Simpson of Woodlake in Northern California came upon the bones while hiking through the desert Wednesday afternoon. The skeleton was in a sitting position, the torso propped against bushes.

“When I found the skeleton, it was headless,” said Ed Simpson. “After my wife saw it, she couldn’t sleep for three days.”

Simpson said the investigators took a lower dental plate, scraps of cloth, apparently stained with blood, and tatters of clothing for analysis.

Kuhn’s son, John, in a telephone interview from his home in Prescott, Ariz., said the dentures and description of the clothing suggest the remains may be his father’s.

“I would hope that it is him, just to clear everything up,” he said. “Everything has been in limbo since September, 1993. This has been a mystery to me and my brother.”

Kuhn was a popular rancher in Three Points, a few miles from the Kern County border in the mountains overlooking the Antelope Valley. Active and alert, he was a well-known fixture at the town’s lone bar, fond of spinning tales of his days as a commander in the Navy. Locals affectionately called him The Commander.

In January, 1992, Kuhn hired husband-and-wife caretakers James Keck, 72, and Linda Keck, 47, to help around his 4-K Ranch.

In the months after the Kecks arrived, those who were close to Kuhn said his normally meticulous financial transactions and record keeping became irregular. Those who knew the Kecks, including their daughter Laurie, said in interviews that the couple liked gambling.

Laurie Keck also told sheriff’s investigators that her parents had borrowed money from Kuhn at least twice.

On Sept. 16, 1993, Kuhn disappeared. Sheriff’s deputies using tracking dogs were unable to locate him. Only his car was found, abandoned at the Burbank Airport.

Soon after, sheriff’s detectives opened a murder investigation. The Kecks were arrested in December, 1993, on suspicion of murdering Kuhn. Because Kuhn’s body was never found and investigators lacked enough evidence, they were released and soon left town.