The Pintada Kid on the Case: Part 10. The Kid Makes His Case

[FBI Investigator Raymond] Gere states his biggest regret was his inability to solve the 1935 Lorius and Heberer murder mystery. He suggested that amateur sleuths should look for human bones along U.S. 60 in western New Mexico. He stated the case "has consumed 30 FBI volumes, seven years of my time as an agent, and countless pages of newspaper and magazine type."

"There have been hundreds of theories about what happened and where it happened to George and Laura Lorius, and Albert and Tillie Heberer," Gere told the Chieftain. "I am convinced they were murdered and their bodies were hidden within 25 miles west of Quemado, along U.S. 60."

~Paul Hardin, El Defensor Chieftain, 6/7/08

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The Pintada Kid continues the story of his investigation into the Heberer Lorius case, in his own words. For a list of the entire series, click on the Pintada Kid on the Case tab at the top of the page.

 Over 25 years ago, when I felt sure I could solve the Heberer Lorius case, I tried to talk to Larry Barker (a local TV reporter) and others in the Media and even emailed everybody who was anybody.  I tried to get the morning programs to listen to my story but no one was interested or wanted to even reply to me. I always wondered why these people in the media didn't at least call me and question me as to why I felt that I could solve the Heberer Lorius case when no one else could.


I had that Lt. Rhoades [New Mexico State Police Investigator Norman Rhoades] call me and we talked on the phone and emailed each other. He even told me that I had a good chance of solving the case. Then he ceased contact and even said to the Albuquerque Journal I didn't want to speak to him and the Heberer Lorius relatives, just because when he unexpectedly showed up I was supposed to know he was there [and I didn't]. 


All I can say is I did my homework and went overboard finding evidence and the exact area where the bodies will be found, plus I have my Original story and not a Dream* like one of the Heberer Lorius relatives claims to have had about her sister being buried under concrete or whatever. What about the lady who supposedly saw one of the victims murdered--what became of that story? 


There are some old men who think that [the tourists] are buried somewhere near Albuquerque, but that area was combed over thousands of times. Some of these people want to find the bodies in their area because that would be great for bringing in tourists, but their stories are very weak.



The reason I'm the logical one to solve this great mystery is because I know all that land in the center of New Mexico, and I have walked and ridden horses all over in the area where the Heberer Lorius people will be found.  Plus I just happened to have a brother-in-law who knew lots about the case and he's the one that should have solved it but didn't, because there were no bodies to be found. 


It's a great feeling to know you can solve the Heberer Lorius case, especially when at one time I thought it would be impossible to find some skeletons in a cave. But then, when I found the two key pieces of evidence, I knew I was right about the area.


Today I'm just waiting for the Media and the right people in Law Enforcement to go with me so I can prove this case can be solved--that is, if I can trust the people who go in with me.

The Thrill of knowing that a Great Mystery, rivaling those of the Lindbergh Baby and Amelia Earhart, could be solved, slowly faded away as I saw the years pass. I finally came to realize that When a Latino commits a crime or is wearing handcuffs the Media jumps at the chance at giving them coverage forever, but if they have something to contribute of interest to mankind they are ignored and not allowed to tell their story.

There is one last thing I want to say about the Heberer Lorius case. It is this: Out there in the center of New Mexico, you can see Sheepherder writings carved on rocks. When the sheepherders were out there herding sheep and living in tents in the 1930s, the rocks they wrote on showed old model Ts and Airplanes and lots of brands and other markings. These Sheepherder writings are just a few miles from where the Heberer Lorius people will be found, and they are more evidence that the sheepherders wrote about the Heberer Lorius people in their own way. The area where the writings are has lots of snake dens around it and the writings are under an overhang and are in very good condition.


As a little kid living in a Rock Mud house with dirt floors and oil lamps with my two sisters and both parents, my bed was situated under a magazine picture of a Snickers bar cut in half with the Caramel showing. Back then they used newspapers and pictures out of magazines [for decoration].  This picture would drive me crazy because candy was a very Rare treat, and was not seen for months, if ever. Sometimes the only thing we had to eat was maybe a Deer, which was rare; or Jackrabbits and sometimes Rattlesnakes and Porcupines, which were very plentiful. Of course, Rabbit meat bathed in Red chile was always a real Delicacy with a tortilla.



I remember when I was around 3 or 4 years old and food was scarce, we killed a horse for food. I don't remember too much about my dad, just that he hunted for food and sometimes I would follow him. He played guitar and violin, and my mom played guitar, and they both sang. My mom died in a Bad Head-on Crash, so my parents were gone by the time I was 9 years old. I ended up with their Guitar and Violin. The Guitar has Disintegrated by now, but it helped me as a kid to have something to do and I forced myself to learn to play since age 5.


Who would have guessed that someday this kid whose toys were insects and spiders out in the mountains would end up Solving the Heberer Lorius case 1935 with or without the help of Law Enforcement and Media.

~El Pintada Kid

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* On May 22, before she knew anything was amiss on her sister's vacation, Laura Lorius' sister woke up with a fright in Illinois and told her husband that her sister had come to her in a dream and said, "I've been murdered and buried under the floor of an old building. You'll have trouble finding me."

~Leslie Linthicum, Albuquerque Journal, 6/24/10