What happened to Manuel Resendez? Remains found on Indiana serial killer's property identified as man missing since 1993

The remains found on the property of presumed serial killer Herbert Baumeister have been officially identified as those of a man reported missing in 1993. Hamilton County Coroner Jeff Jellison confirmed on Thursday that the remains recovered at Baumeister's Fox Hollow Farm estate in Westfield, Indiana, belong to Manuel Resendez, who was 34 years old at the time of his disappearance.

The discovery of Resendez's remains dates back to 1996 when investigators unearthed a staggering "10,000 charred bones and bone fragments" on Baumeister's property. This finding raised concerns about the possibility of multiple victims, potentially up to 25, associated with Baumeister.

The identification of Manuel Resendez was made possible through a family reference sample provided early last year, according to Jellison. The West Hamilton County Coroner's Office, with the assistance of numerous forensic specialists, worked diligently to match the discovered remains to Resendez, as reported by CBS.

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25 Sets of remains found on the property of serial killer Herb Baumeister

Herb Baumeister, the suspected serial killer, took his own life in Canada in July 1996 at the age of 49, just as investigators were closing in to question him regarding the macabre discoveries at Fox Hollow Farm.

Baumeister, a married father of three who frequented gay bars, had long been suspected of luring men to his residence and committing heinous crimes, as reported by the Independent. By 1999, authorities had connected Baumeister to the disappearance of a minimum of 16 men since 1980, some of whose bodies were found dumped in shallow streams across rural central Indiana and western Ohio.

Investigators suspected that Baumeister enticed unsuspecting men to his property, where he allegedly carried out these gruesome acts.

In 2022, the corner's office initiated renewed efforts to identify the remains discovered at Fox Hollow Farm. They reached out to relatives of young men who had gone missing during Baumeister's active period, urging them to submit DNA samples, as reported by CBS.

Hamilton County Coroner Jeff Jellison announced this initiative, expressing the belief that the charred bones and fragments could potentially represent the remains of at least 25 individuals.

In October, authorities confirmed the identity of another victim of Herb Baumeister. They named Allen Livingston as his ninth presumed victim. Livingston, an Indianapolis man who disappeared in 1993, vanished on the same day as Manuel Resendez, as reported by the Independent.

Hamilton County Coroner Jeff Jellison expressed, "I would like to thank the entire team of law enforcement and forensic specialists that have come together to support this effort," as reported by CBS affiliate WTTV.

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Tony Harris recalls terrifying encounter with the serial killer

Tony Harris, a survivor, has implicated the notorious serial killer Herb Baumeister. Harris recounted a near-fatal encounter in 1993 when he met Baumeister, who went by the alias "Brian Smart," in a gay bar. The evening took a dark turn when they returned to the serial killer's Fox Hollow property.

Engaging in consensual activities, the situation escalated as Baumeister, the serial killer, allegedly attempted to strangle Harris with a pool hose during intercourse. Harris cleverly pretended to lose consciousness, seizing an opportunity to escape the property, as reported by CBS.

Harris's friend Roger Goodlet had disappeared around the same time, leading him to believe that Goodlet fell victim to Baumeister, the serial killer.

The renewed identification effort in October 2023 bore fruit, identifying remains as those of Allen Livingston, who vanished in 1993 at the age of 27. As the Independent reported, Eric Pranger, Livingston's cousin, spearheaded the investigation's reopening.

While achieving closure brought some relief, Pranger expressed the emotional toll of reliving the past, stating,

"We're happy because we got closure and we were able to identify him, but sad because we had to relive it a bit."