Bones were found at UC Berkeley. Now police say there was a homicide
Skeletal remains found at UC Berkeley earlier this year have been identified and the manner of death ruled a homicide, the university’s Police Department announced Wednesday.
The remains were found in January in a building used as storage space.
They were identified as those of Steven Lawrence McCreary, born in October 1972.
“Forensic and other evidence indicates the death occurred many years ago,” UC Berkeley police said in a news release.
McCreary was known to have been alive in 2009, the department said.
“Based on the condition of the bones analyzed by the Alameda County Coroner’s Office, McCreary’s death is a homicide,” the department said.
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McCreary was originally from Texas and was not affiliated with the university, officials said. He was “known to travel around the country” by various means including train and hitchhiking and had spent time in the San Francisco Bay Area.
The building where McCreary’s remains were found was part of the Clark Kerr Campus, a residential hall a mile from the “core campus,” officials said.
The incident remains under investigation, and school police asked that anyone with information contact Det. Sgt. Jon Caires at (510) 642-0482, jcaires@berkeley.edu; or Det. Mitch Levi at (510) 642-3658, mlevi@berkeley.edu.
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