Bones Those of Montecito Man Missing 2 Years

Bones uncovered by a hiker’s dog last week in the mountains north of Ojai have been identified as the remains of a 35-year-old Montecito millionaire missing since December, 1989, authorities said.

John Richard Klaus, whose death has been classified as homicide, was identified by a pair of cowboy boots and a belt buckle that friends said were fixtures in his wardrobe.

Santa Barbara County sheriff’s detectives are searching for a 29-year-old man who was arrested in Oregon last October on suspicion of stealing Klaus’ Mercedes convertible and using his credit cards.

David Keith Anderson jumped $20,000 bail shortly after his arrest and has not been seen since, said Senior Deputy Tim Gracey, the department’s spokesman.

Authorities said Klaus lived off the proceeds of a trust fund from his adoptive parents, the owners of a department store chain.

“He didn’t have a job. His friends said he was a sportsman,” Gracey said.

While his friends suspected foul play when Klaus disappeared on Dec. 3, 1989, the only thing amiss in the Park Hill Lane home where Klaus lived alone was a large amount of missing cash, Gracey said.

“There were no signs of a struggle, no blood and no breakage,” Gracey said. “We’re presuming the crime occurred in our area, and the body was just dumped up there.”

Klaus’ remains were discovered July 6 near Pine Mountain Campground, about 30 miles north of Ojai and three miles east of California 33.

The remote stretch of highway through Los Padres National Forest has been a frequent dumping ground for murder victims, with eight bodies discovered along the highway since 1980.

A hiker contacted authorities after his dog found an arm bone in the underbrush, said Detective Sgt. Lance Young of the Ventura County Sheriff’s Department.

Young said search-and-rescue teams combing the steep hillside found most of the victim’s remains within 500 feet of the original discovery, apparently scattered by scavenging animals.

A pair of distinctively designed leather boots, size 8 1/2 EEE, the metal belt buckle and scraps of the victim’s denim jeans were the only articles of clothing to survive the two winters, Young said.

Their discovery proved crucial to identifying Klaus because investigators were unable to locate any of his dental records and would have been unable to confirm his identity from the bone fragments, Gracey said.

Anderson, suspected from the outset of being involved in Klaus’ disappearance, moved to Renton, Wash., a few weeks after Klaus was reported missing.

He acknowledged to detectives who questioned him there that he was in possession of a 1971 Mercedes SL450 matching Klaus’ car the week after his disappearance, but claimed that it was loaned to him by a friend, Gracey said.

Klaus’ car turned up abandoned in Sacramento in February, 1990, and detectives soon determined that Anderson had been running up charges on Klaus’ credit cards, Gracey said.

Anderson was arrested in Gresham, Ore., on Oct. 12, 1990, for auto theft and credit card forgery and was extradited to Santa Barbara County, but jumped bail the following month, Gracey said.