Vandermark was hired by Lefty Rosenthal in 1974 to oversee the slot machines at the Stardust and the other three Argent-controlled casinos, but he was really there to run their skimming operation. The barrel was found Sunday in the Lake Mead National Recreational Area by boaters who informed authorities. Credit: Shawna Elizabeth Hollister 1 is now visible and the low lake level pumping station is now operational. Thanks for contacting us. Human remains that were found Sunday concealed in a washed-up barrel on Lake Mead are believed to be that of a male gunshot victim from decades ago, police told The Associated Press. Most speculation has centered on George Jay Vandermark, a gambling machine cheater trusted by the mob to oversee its slot machine operation at the Stardust casino on the Las Vegas Strip that is, before he double-crossed them. The Clark County Coroners Office estimates it could take as long as a year to identify the body in the barrel. Lawsuits claim it wrecked their teeth. But the mobs relative free rein in Las Vegas began to erode as state and federal law enforcement stepped up its scrutiny of casinos. Boaters spotted the barrel on the newly exposed bottom of Lake Mead Sunday afternoon. Police plan to reach out to experts at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas to analyze when the barrel started eroding. A body found in a barrel at the bottom of Lake Mead is being tested for the DNA of a man that went missing 45 years ago. His weapon of choice was a .22-caliber pistol, equipped with a suppressor, and fired into the victims head. Our research has found three possible victims who may be the body in the barrel. Newsweek reached out to Hollister for comment. Corporate purchases of Strip resorts drove out many older crime figures with hidden holdings. After he was theoretically killed and shoved into a barrel, it wouldnt have taken much to dump his body, perhaps using his own vessel. The person could see the remains in. 1 above the surface level of the Colorado River reservoir behind Hoover Dam. Four days later, his car was spotted in the parking lot of the Circus Circus casino on the Strip. Goodman was a defense attorney for members of the mafia and . If so, they had a motive to rub him out. The agency said in a. He soon expanded into street rackets with his gang of burglars, bookmakers, jewelry fencers and hitmen. "As Lake Mead water levels continue to fall during the worst drought in the history of the Colorado River Basin, the Southern Nevada Water Authority's low lake level pumping station will ensure Southern Nevada maintains access to its primary water supplies in Lake Mead," the SNWA said. All rights reserved. Argent Corp. had become a major player in Las Vegas owning the Stardust, Hacienda and Marina hotel-casinos on the Strip, and the Fremont downtown. Las Vegas police investigated, arrested a suspect and concluded with certainty that the motive was robbery and not tied to his fathers activities. With the mob losing its influence, petty crooks and lowlife hustlers who once feared the wrath of mobsters moved to town and even entered the casinos to operate. A second set of skeletal human remains has been discovered at Lake Mead, just a few days after visitors found a body in a barrel at the rapidly shrinking Nevada reservoir, rangers reported. 1:55. The agency said in a statement rangers searched an area near Hemenway Harbor and found the barrel with skeletal remains. District Judge Michelle Leavitt set another hearing for March 9 to appoint him a standby attorney through the Clark County public defenders office. As of March 2022, elevation was marked at about 1,061 feetthe lowest elevation ever recorded. Did the Outfit fear that Pappas might have something to reveal about the then-unfolding details about skimming at the Argent casinos? 2023 FOX News Network, LLC. Get all the stories you need-to-know from the most powerful name in news delivered first thing every morning to your inbox. We believe this is a homicide as a result of a gunshot wound, Homicide Section Lt. Ray Spencer said, according to the statement. Lake Mead and Lake Powell upstream are the largest human-made reservoirs in the U.S., part of a system that provides water to more than 40 million people, tribes, agriculture and industry in Arizona, California, Colorado, Nevada, New Mexico, Utah, Wyoming and across the southern border in Mexico. Authorities say a barrel carrying human remains has been discovered in Lake Mead. Copyright 2023 CBS Interactive Inc. All rights reserved. The former Raiders player faces four felony charges in connection with a November 2021 car crash that killed a Las Vegas woman. The Outfit sent him to Las Vegas in 1971 to watch its secret casino interests. Several boaters on Lake Mead spotted an old rusted barrel last Sunday afternoon. The National Park Service (NPS) and Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department (LVMPD) are working in cohesion after the barrel of the reported remains turned up on shore. A rusted metal barrel, near the location of where a different barrel was found containing a human body, sits exposed on shore during low water levels due to the western drought at the Lake. Lakes Online has even more dire news, reporting that as of May 2 elevation has decreased even more to about 1,054 feet at the lake. 5. On May 1st, the remains of a decomposed human body stuffed inside a corroded metal barrel were discovered stuck in Lake Meads mud. This photo taken Monday, April 25, 2022, by the Southern Nevada Water Authority shows the top of Lake Mead drinking water Intake No. document.getElementById( "ak_js_1" ).setAttribute( "value", ( new Date() ).getTime() ); Thanks for contacting us. Johnny Pappas is the leading candidate for the barrel murder victim, due to several key factors, as reported recently by longtime Las Vegas journalist John L. Smith, who knew him as a child. Quotes displayed in real-time or delayed by at least 15 minutes. May 2, 2022 Updated 6:10 PM PT. Echo Bay Resort, now closed, was a hotel and boat launch. Human remains were discovered in a barrel over the weekend at the bottom of Nevadas drought-stricken Lake Mead, according to officials. 2023 FOX News Network, LLC. Shaw has been missing in 1977, Brock told the news outlet. Then Crespo, set to appear at trial, vanished in June 1983. And as it continues to dry up, dark secrets are being revealed. The three men, each with links to the mob, disappeared at that time and their bodies were never found. Many details about this man have been lost to history, but it is possible he had some valuable knowledge about the Argent skimming case. A body inside a barrel was found over the weekend on the the newly exposed bottom of Nevada's Lake Mead . Theres William Crespo, a drug-runner who turned states evidence after he got busted smuggling cocaine. It got worse for Vandermark because the Outfit suspected him of only giving them $4 million from the skimming operation and pocketing $3 million for himself. And law enforcement warned that there is a "very good chance" more human remains are found as drought causes the lake's waters to recede. Stephanie Wenger. Feb 23 The mob, ignoring the conventional wisdom to avoid murdering people in the open city, reacted violently and victims started disappearing without a trace. "My husband heard a woman scream and then he went to look and found the body in a very deteriorated 50-gallon drum," Hollister told local news station News 3. We were docking our boat to go home and heard a woman scream, witness Shawna Hollister told the station. The largest man-made reservoir in the United States is in serious trouble. When news about the body in the barrel at Lake Mead broke, the first name to come to mind for many longtime Las Vegans was George Jay Vandermark, who vanished in 1976 while being pursued by the Outfit. Homicide investigators believe the victim was shot. 1894 shipwreck found in Lake Huron, confirming "powerful, tragic story", Bipartisan Senate group unveils rail safety bill in response to Ohio derailment, What to know about Shigella bacteria as drug-resistant strain spreads, Drought disrupts "irreplaceable" Mississippi River shipping corridor, Mississippi River's low water level reveals shipwreck, apparently a ferry, A startup is "growing" water for drought-parched California. The fifth set of human remains since May were found in Lake Mead this week, officials say. Lake Meada reservoir in Nevada and Arizona, formed by the Hoover Dam on the Colorado Riveris evaporating due to the megadrought gripping the western United States. Las Vegas Metro Police fear they . First published on Mon 2 May 2022 19.38 EDT. Police say man drove 90 mph on Flamingo, caused fatal crash, Las Vegas nonprofit sees uptick in services for survivors of sexual violence, Im able to calm them down, says CCDCs inmate whisperer, Judge allows Robert Telles to represent himself in murder case, Henry Ruggs gets new preliminary hearing date in fatal DUI case, Driver in deadly hit-and-run sentenced to prison, $785M budget for Las Vegas police gets tentative approval, Robert Telles lists rental properties as he awaits murder trial, 4 slain in Las Vegas in 16-hour span, police say. Pho Soup Las Vegas. Lake Mead's water levels have dropped about 150 feet since 2000, according to SNWA's website, adding that a continued dip below 895 feet would prevent the Hoover Dam from releasing water downstream to California, Arizona and Mexico. (Scott Henry/Las Vegas Review-Journal), The bodies of Anthony and Michael Spilotro were found buried at the edge of this cornfield near Morocco, Indiana, in June 1986. LAS VEGAS A body inside a barrel was found over the weekend on the newly exposed bottom of Nevada's Lake Mead as drought depletes one of the largest U.S. reservoirs and officials. "We believe this is a homicide as a result of a gunshot wound," Las Vegas homicide Lt. Ray Spencer said in a statement. In 1974, the Los Angeles Times report that between 1971 and 1974, Las Vegas saw more gangland slayings than in the previous 25 years combined. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. The barrel was exposed at the bottom of the lake amid a drought. (L.E. The mob, ignoring the conventional wisdom to avoid murdering people in the open city, reacted violently and victims started disappearing without a trace. The photos of human remains were released by KTNV 13 ABC News out of Las Vegas, NV. For a while, Vandermarks son, Jeff, who was working with the gaming board, communicated with his father, whom he said might be willing to return to testify. 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