Clark County and the Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department are appealing to the public for help in identifying a homicide victim whose remains were discovered at Lake Mead in 2022. Last year, four sets of human remains were exposed due to falling water levels at the lake. Three of the four sets have been identified by the Clark County’s Office of Coroner/Medical Examiner. The remains found on July 25, August 6, and August 16, 2022, were identified as belonging to Claude Russell Pensinger, who went missing on July 14, 1998. The cause and manner of his death remain undetermined.
Additionally, another set of remains was discovered on October 17, 2022, in the Callville Bay area by contractors working near the marina. Two more sets of remains were found on October 19 and were determined to belong to the same person, identified as Donald P. Smith from North Las Vegas. Smith reportedly drowned in April 1974 at the age of 39. On May 7, remains were found in the Callville Bay area and identified as Thomas Erndt, a 42-year-old man from Las Vegas who drowned on August 2, 2022.
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The last victim, whose remains were found in a barrel at Hemenway Harbor on May 1, 2022, remains unidentified. Investigators have determined that he died from a gunshot wound and ruled it a homicide. Based on the clothing and footwear found in the barrel, authorities believe the man was killed in the mid-1970s or early 1980s. Facial approximation images of the unidentified man have been released by authorities.
The Federal Bureau of Investigations office in Quantico, Virginia, created the images, which have also been shared with the National Missing and Unidentified Person’s System in the hopes of identifying the man. Anyone with information that may help in identifying the victim is encouraged to email coroner@clarkcountynv.gov, referencing case number 2022-02725. Information about the possible incident that led to the man’s shooting can be reported to LVMPD’s Homicide Section at 702-828-3521 or homicide@lvmpd.com. To remain anonymous, individuals can contact Crime Stoppers at 702-385-5555 or visit crimestoppersofnv.com.
