Fremont police look into tip on 1999 death
FREMONT – Fremont police are looking into a tip regarding the 1999 death of a 21-year-old man who was crushed to death in a garbage truck outside a city bar.
The death of Lee Naus, of Lindsey, was ruled an accident.
In a recent phone message, an anonymous man said he heard around the time of Naus' death that two men — whom the caller named — threw Naus, who was drunk, into a Dumpster near Bud's Tavern on West State Street. Naus was crushed after the Dumpster was unloaded into a garbage truck.
The tip, however, did not provide new information. Fremont police reports from the 1999 investigation show police received the same tip regarding the people mentioned in the anonymous call. They also checked out similar tips regarding other people alleged to have thrown Naus, whom the tipsters said had passed out, in the Dumpster.
It is not clear whether detectives investigated the 1999 tip regarding the two men. Fremont Police Chief Tim Wiersma, who was a sergeant at the time of Naus' death, was not involved in the investigation.
Capt. Jim White worked on the case but was not available for comment Monday.
Detective Roger Oddo will check into the information provided in the message, Wiersma said.
"He's free to do whatever he deems necessary," Wiersma said.
Fremont police are not reopening the investigation, which would involve starting from scratch, Wiersma said.
Naus went out with friends on Sept. 30, 1999. A garbage truck driver found his body around 3 a.m. Oct. 1 after emptying a Dumpster in the area of Bud's Tavern on West State Street and compacting the garbage.
Naus died of multiple blunt force trauma from the trash compactor, according to the autopsy report from the Lucas County Coroner's Office.
Naus' father told police his son called him around 2 a.m. Oct. 1 because he needed a ride home, police reports show. Poor reception kept him from hearing exactly where his son was, he told police.
The father then drove to Fremont and unsuccessfully searched for his son from 2:15 to 4 a.m., according to police reports.
mksmith@gannett.com
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