Professor Denies Killing, Dismembering Youth

California State University professor Max Bernard Franc, suspected of shooting a teen-ager and dismembering his body with a rented chain saw, has denied committing the crime while insisting that “another party” was responsible, an investigator said Monday.

Authorities would not elaborate on Franc’s alleged contention. However, they continued searching for an unidentified man who returned the chain saw to an equipment yard in Hollywood last week, hours after Franc had rented the power tool for $41 a day.

Deputy Steve Lee of the Los Angeles Sheriff’s Department information bureau said the second suspect was described as a white man in his 30s; about 5 feet, 10 inches tall, and 160 pounds, with shoulder-length blond hair. Shop employees cleaning the saw afterward found blood and bits of human flesh in its inner workings. They reported the discovery to police, and Franc was arrested Saturday in West Hollywood. He is being held there at the Los Angeles County sheriff’s station without bail.

A life-long bachelor, Franc, 57, kept a small apartment on Genesee Avenue in West Hollywood but normally resided in Fresno, where he taught political science at Cal State Fresno.

Not Identified

He is expected to be arraigned Wednesday in Superior Court on charges related to the slaying of the unidentified teen-ager.

As forensic experts continued their efforts to identify the youth, detectives throughout Southern and Central California were checking their files of young men reported missing to see if any may have come in contact with Franc.

“At this point, it looks like we just have the one victim,” Detective Dan Martin of the Fresno Police Department said.

The victim’s head and torso, wrapped in a blanket, were found by a rancher last week along a rural Madera County road leading out of Fresno toward Yosemite National Park. The teen-ager had a gunshot wound in the head and had been dead about two days, according to a Madera County coroner’s report.

Two days after the discovery, a set of arms and lower legs, possibly belonging to the same victim, were found near the Golden State Freeway in Valencia. All of the body parts appeared to have been mutilated with the same type of instrument, possibly a chain saw, according to police.

But on Monday, Detective Martin said Franc has denied killing the teen-ager.

“He’s maintaining there’s another party involved,” Martin said.