Will valley killer's info lead to 14 bodies in Lake County?

STOCKTON -- Twice in phone conversations, convicted serial killer Wesley Shermantine has told Sacramento bounty hunter Leon-ard Padilla that he's ready to pinpoint the locations of 14 bodies buried on Cow Mountain in Lake County.

Gov. Jerry Brown on July 19 signed into law a bill allowing state prison officials to take a heavily guarded Shermantine temporarily off death row to show them burial places.

Padilla said Lake County, north of the Bay Area, may be a good place to start. "That's a place to bring Shermantine to and say, 'OK, show me or shut up,' " Padilla said.

Earlier this year, the 46-year-old Shermantine wrote letters that led officials to the remains of five murder victims in San Joaquin and Calaveras counties. He sent hand-drawn maps to The Record and to Padilla.

Shermantine, of Linden, and his boyhood hunting buddy Loren Herzog were convicted of multiple murders after their 1999 arrests. Herzog hanged himself Jan. 17 after learning that Shermantine was giving up incriminating details.

Murder spree in '80s, '90s

The duo's killing spree spanned the 1980s and 1990s. The two were avid hunters and frequent methamphetamine abusers.

Following Shermantine's tips, investigators in February unearthed the remains of Cyndi Vanderheiden and Chevelle "Chevy" Wheeler near Shermantine family property in Calaveras County.

They also recovered from a Linden well in eastern San Joaquin County the remains of Joann Hobson, Kimberly Billy and a third woman whom investigators have yet to identify.

An earlier attempt to bring Shermantine under heavy security from San Quentin State Prison was thwarted by San Joaquin County Sheriff Steve Moore, who cited security concerns.

Assemblywoman Cathleen Galgiani, D-Stockton, wrote the legislation that won the governor's signature. A state prison official said last week any search efforts involving Shermantine will be kept secret.

Shermantine told Padilla, who continues to pay the killer for fresh information about the murder victims, that three fellow inmates on death row told him about the bodies in Lake County.

Shermantine said he is ready to lead officials to their location for the sake of the victims' families. Shermantine in recent letters to The Record has begun to claim a role in the murders, but it's unclear if he's being truthful about his involvement, if any, in the Lake County crimes.

54,000 acres to cover

Sgt. Steve Brooks, a Lake County sheriff's spokesman, said his department is ready to help recover any victims there. They'll need Shermantine's help, he said, because Cow Mountain is a rugged patch of 54,000 acres.

"Once we get some decent information we can work off of, we fully intend to investigate this," Brooks said. The Lake County sheriff wants to interview Shermantine.

Cow Mountain is a wild expanse of rugged terrain northwest of Clare Lake open to hunters pursuing deer, turkeys, boar and quail.

Brooks, who just last week learned of Shermantine and his killing spree, said Sheriff Francisco Rivera assigned investigators in his department to research any missing persons from the area.

Brooks said it is most likely that 14 murder victims — if the information bears out — were brought from another area.

"We're working on that right now," Brooks said. "I don't think we have that many missing persons reports."