Known merely as “John Doe” and “Huck” for the past 24 years, a man found dead in the Santa Cruz Mountains in 1998 ago has been identified.
BOULDER CREEK — Known merely as “John Doe” and “Huck” for the past 24 years, a man found dead in the Santa Cruz Mountains more than 24 years ago has been identified.The Santa Cruz County Sheriff’s Office’s forensics services team, utilizing forensic genetic genealogy techniques, paired with the California Department of Justice Jan Bashinski DNA Lab, Othram Inc.
Cupo was just 22 years old when his body was dumped down a steep Bear Creek Road embankment about 8 miles north of downtown Boulder Creek. His body, wrapped in a tarp, was discovered by sightseers parked at a summit turnout at least a month later, on Dec. 27, 1998. In addition to issues with decomposition, Cupo’s skull had been shattered into dozens of pieces, making identification nearly impossible at the time.
According to deputies’ subsequent investigation, Cupo had lost contact with his adopted family after moving to several locations around the country. Officials say Cupo was born in California and adopted by a family in Philadelphia. He is believed to have subsequently resided in Florida, Arizona and Ohio. Detectives were unsure when he made his final move, back to California.
According to prosecutors’ court case filings, Towner and a friend approached Cupo and his girlfriend “Anna” for a ride from downtown Santa Cruz to Boulder Creek. Cupo was purportedly seeking to sell his .38-caliber handgun. Later that night while others were sleeping, however, Towner lured Capo into another room, where the trio beat him with a baseball bat and telescope and slit his throat. They later dropped a cinder block on his head, cleaned up and moved the body off the property.
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