Gordie Sanderson

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"Septic Tank Sam" was the name given by investigators to an unidentified man found in a septic tank outside of Tofield, Alberta, Canada in 1977.

Case

Additional reconstruction

Sam was found in a 1.8 meter deep septic tank on an abandoned farm house, 13km west of Tofield, by owners of the property who had been searching the old septic tank for a pump. Investigating officers described his death as one of the most vindictive and sadistic crimes that they had ever encountered.

According to the autopsy, he had been tied up and beaten while his body had been repeatedly burned using a small butane blowtorch and cigarettes. He had also been sexually mutilated before he was finally shot in the head and chest. He was then rolled up in a yellow bed-sheet tied with nylon rope and dumped head first into the septic tank, which had been partially filled with water.

The killer (or killers) then dumped limestone into the tank in order to dissolve the body and speed up the rate of decomposition. However, unbeknownst to them, when quicklime is combined with water, only a small degree of superficial burning will occur with a large amount of body tissue becoming dried out, resulting in the body being relatively well-preserved for the time it had spent in the tank. Even so, the remains were so badly mutilated that it took an Edmonton medical examiner months to determine whether the remains were male or female.

Sam still had all of his teeth, some fillings, and had signs of recent dental work. Medical examiners sent dental records to over 800 dental practitioners in the Alberta area- even having them published in Canadian dental magazines and nationwide bulletins- but no leads as to his identity were uncovered. He was laid to rest in an unmarked pauper's grave in an Edmonton Cemetery.

His body was exhumed in 1979, and a forensic pathologist named Dr. Clyde Snow from Oklahoma was brought in to reconstruct the skull in order to help with identification. Dr. Snow took numerous measurements of his skull and bones, and input the information into a computer program, which indicated that Sam was likely of aboriginal heritage and approximately 35 years old, deputing the original claim by the medical examiner that he had been a 28 year old Caucasian man. DNA samples were taken, and facial reconstructions were posted in various newspapers around the country.

The investigators believe that he may have been transient, a migrant worker, or otherwise not a long term resident of Alberta. Based upon his clothing, he is suspected to have been a construction worker or farm laborer. It is likely that his killer/s knew the area well and chose the remote location in the belief that the body would not be found for a very long time. No evidence was found to suggest that he was murdered on the property itself. Investigation is still ongoing.

Physical Description

• Native American or Caucasian
• Medium build
• Dark hair
• Right-handed
• Likely suffered an illness at the age of 5

Clothing

• A Blue Levi work shirt with snap buttons
• A gray T-shirt
• Blue jeans
• Gray wool socks
• Brown imitation Wallabee shoes.

Theories

• He may be Edward Joseph Arcand.
  • Edward was missing six teeth while Sam still had all of his teeth intact.

Links

• Septic Tank Sam at the Doe Network

• National Center for Missing Persons and Unidentified Remains

• Canadian Unsolved Crimes

• Edmonton Journal

• The Globe and Mail (2007)