2 Bodies Identified as Missing Couple From La Canada

The bodies of two people found buried in a shallow grave near Yucaipa have been identified as a couple from the upscale La Canada Flintridge area who had been missing since Feb. 7, according to the San Bernardino County Sheriff’s Department.

The victims were Harold “Skip” Tillman, 55, a certified public accountant, and his wife, Joan “Joni” Tillman, 51, both of Bramblewood Road, a spokesman said. The Tillmans recently had moved to the neighborhood from Glendale, where they had lived for 12 to 15 years.

As police scoured both neighborhoods for evidence and witnesses Friday, details began emerging that paint a mysterious sequence of events, including valuables left untouched, a dead dog, an unlocked sliding glass door and a car abandoned in a Van Nuys neighborhood.

“There has been a lot of nervousness and speculation about what’s going on,” said Mike Miller, a neighbor of the Tillmans.

Said Mary Duerrstein, a Glendale neighbor and childhood friend of Joan Tillman: “They were the most generous and popular people of any that I know. We are just so devastated.”

Authorities released few details. They declined to say whether the Tillmans and their prized dog, Teddy, who was found dead near the grave, had been shot.

But information from neighbors revealed the following sequence:

The Tillmans returned home from dinner with friends Sunday, Feb. 6, shortly after 9 p.m. Joan Tillman put her husband’s clothes in the wash, and she changed into a robe.

She was still wearing the robe when her body was discovered, and detectives found her husband’s dinner clothes in the dryer, said Karol Eller, a friend from Simi Valley. Detectives also found the sliding glass door unlocked, something the organized Joan Tillman would not allow, Duerrstein said.

The next morning, friends and business associates started calling the Tillmans’ home, leaving messages about missed appointments and breaks in their routine. Duerrstein said she had expected Tillman to pick up her business records that morning.

Meanwhile, a man who was walking his dog along a wash in Yucaipa in San Bernardino County found a dead dog. He called the number on the dog’s collar and left a message. It was the Tillmans’ number. It was the 15th of more than 30 messages that had been left.

His message said: “I found your dog, and I’m sorry to say he’s dead,” Eller said.

By this time, Eller and other friends were frantic with worry, and called the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department. A deputy went to the scene Tuesday but found no sign of foul play and nothing apparently missing. Newspapers were in the driveway, their Jaguar was in the garage, and their 2000 Dodge Durango and dog were gone. Eller said he assumed they had gone on a trip.

The following day, Eller and one of the Tillmans’ Sunday night dinner companions decided to go into the house.

As the deputy had said, the house looked undisturbed. But Eller noticed the bed covers had been turned down as if the couple had been preparing to go to bed.

Eller listened to their phone messages and heard the call from the man who had found the dog. Eller called him and explained the situation.

The man then called the Yucaipa station of the San Bernardino Sheriff’s Department. Early Thursday morning, they dug up the grave and found the bodies.

In the grave, detectives found a sheet matching the Tillmans’ bed sheet. They also found green paper towels and a green hand towel that matched items in the home.

Eller said the only things known to be missing from the home so far are Tillman’s wallet, his wife’s purse and their cell phones. He said he doesn’t know if detectives found those items at the grave.

All of their jewelry, including her wedding band, was untouched.

Early on Feb. 11, Los Angeles police found the Tillmans’ Durango parked near the intersection of Community Street and Haskell Avenue in Van Nuys.