Clark Rockefeller and the San Marino Bones

Today the saga of alleged non-custodial kidnapper and mystery man Clark Rockefeller took a turn into made-for-TV land. Investigators from Los Angeles have flown to Boston to speak with Rockefeller about a 23-year-old missing persons/possible murder case in San Marino, CA.

They want to talk to Clark Rockefeller about the San Marino Bones, and ask him if he is the man who once called himself "Christopher Crowe Mount Batten Chichester."

Chichester was the name used by a man who certainly had a lot in common with Rockefeller. In 1994 the Associated Press reported that Chichester was described by friends as "an urbane gentleman with a trace of an English accent who joined worthy causes and made friends easily."

Chichester told different stories about who he was: a computer expert; producer, even stockbroker.

One friend said, "Chris Chichester dressed well and was articulate and knowledgeable about whatever subject he happened to be talking about at the time." That friend described Chichester as "an interesting character."

The same was said about Clark Rockefeller while he was on the run -- he was a character, a charming eccentric. And like Rockefeller, who once helped fund the building of a new city facility in the town where he lived in New Hampshire, Chichester was said to be civic-minded. He attended the Church of Our Savior in San Gabriel, CA and met new friends there. In 1984, Chichester reportedly even volunteered to help paint San Marino High School.

Like Clark Rockefeller, Chichester used aliases: Christopher Crowe and Christian Gerhartsreiter.

The last time anyone saw Christopher Chichester was in 1989, in Greenwich, CT. Chichester attempted to sell a truck and the potential buyer grew suspicious when he discovered there was still a lien on the vehicle.The vehicle was owned by John Sohus, of San Marino, CA. Sohus and his wife Linda had been missing since February 8, 1985.

John and Linda Sohus had supposedly gone to Europe. Some people even received postcards from Paris, signed by Linda. They'd been gone for two months when Chichester, who rented a home on property owned by the couple, also disappeared.

On May 8, 1994, workers in San Marino were digging a pool on that property when they uncovered plastic-wrapped bones from a dismembered body. It was later determined that the bones were most likely the remains of John Sohus.

Unsolved Mysteries covered the Sohus disappearance, and in that production the show stated that Christian Gerhartsreiter was Chichester's real name. Only one readily available U.S. public record be found for that name. It was for a marriage that took place in Dane County, WI in 1981 between a Christian Karl Gerhartsreiter and Amy Jersild. Gerhartsreiter was 19 at the time -- he would be 46 or 47 today. [An alternate spelling of the German name is Christian Gerhart Streiter -- per the Boston Herald. ~ Ed.]

California authorities have never said that Christopher Chichester/Christian Gerhartsreiter was a "suspect" in the death of John Sohus or the disappearance of Linda Sohus. But they certainly got on a plane pretty fast when a fingerprint from Clark Rockefeller linked him to Chichester, and possibly some answers to the questions about the the missing couple from San Marino.

Yet Clark Rockefeller claims he can't remember his parents. He won't say where he was born, or who he really is. After all, if he is convicted of the charges related to his alleged abduction of his daughter Reigh, he won't face life in prison. Answering questions about John and Linda Sohus -- if the man has the answers authorities seek -- might lead to a much more long-term acquaintance with life behind prison bars.

[BostonHerald.com; AP -- archived article from Long Beach Press-Telegram; InsideSocal.com/Crime Scene Blog]