Medallion may hold clue to slain man's identity

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>> Anyone with information about the medallion or the man’s identity is urged to contact Hidalgo County Crime Stoppers at (956) 668-8477.

EDINBURG — Investigators hope a medallion on the bullet-riddled body of a man found executed Wednesday morning will help reveal his identity.

A passing truck driver discovered the unidentified body along Mile 19 North Road, just west of Mile 4 Road near Elsa, shortly after 7 a.m. Wednesday.

More than 20 bullets penetrated the man’s back and head, Hidalgo County Sheriff Lupe Treviño said. Investigators believe he was not slain where his body was found.

“Most of the projectiles, if not all of them, are going to be inside his body,” the sheriff said. “It’s an obvious execution because of the way he was shot.”

Investigators describe the victim as a Hispanic man who was in his mid-30s, stood about 5 feet 8 inches tall, weighs about 210 pounds and was wearing a medallion around his neck. He was wearing blue-jean shorts and a green sleeveless shirt, as well as an elastic band on his left elbow.

Treviño said investigators have little information about the medallion, a representation of Eliphas Levi’s Tetragrammaton pentagram, an occult symbol of the human being. Levi was a 19th-century French occultist and magician.

No identification was found on the man and he had no tattoos or scars, the sheriff said. Investigators found no matches after checking local, state and federal fingerprint databases.

The apparent execution is the 16th homicide Hidalgo County sheriff’s deputies have investigated by this year. Local law enforcement agencies in Hidalgo County have now investigated at least 27 new homicides so far in 2009.

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Jared Taylor covers law enforcement and general assignments for The Monitor. You can reach him at (956) 683-4439.