Remains Found in 1993 Identified as Channel Islands High Freshman, Investigators Seeking Help

VENTURA COUNTY, Calif. (KEYT) – Partial human remains recovered outside of Camarillo in August of 1993 have been identified as Joseph Patrick Reardon, also known as Joe Gilbreth, and investigators are turning to the public for help as they investigate the circumstances of his death.

On August 30, 1993, partial human remains were discovered during the clean up of a dump site off Beardsley Road, just north of Wright Road and outside of Camarillo stated a press release Tuesday from the Ventura County Sheriff's Office.

The local medical examiner collected the remains and later confirmed they were human before sending them to an anthropologist for further analysis noted the Ventura County Sheriff's Office.

According to the Ventura County Sheriff's Office, the remains were determined to be the lower leg bone of a male between the ages of 13 and 18-years-old and the case was entered into the National Missing and Unidentified Persons System as UP128289.

In March of 2025, the forensic evidence collected in this investigation was sent to Othram Labs and advanced DNA testing was used to create a DNA profile of the deceased for investigators to use for genealogical-based leads detailed the Ventura County Sheriff's Office.

The Cold Case Unit continued the investigation using the new leads in the case of "Camarillo Teen 1993" and eventually identified close relatives using investigative techniques and rapid DNA testing shared the Ventura County Sheriff's Office.

According to the Ventura County Sheriff's Office, as a result of the Cold Case Unit investigation, the deceased has been positively identified as Joseph Patrick Reardon, born in Fresno on June 17, 1970.

Your News Channel spoke with Cold Case Unit Investigator Guy Moody and learned that Joseph was using the name Joe Gilbreth while enrolled as a freshman at Channel Islands High School between February and April of 1985 and also lived at a now-closed group home in Oxnard that same year.

Joe was using the last name Gilbreth, his mother's ex-boyfriend's last name, during his time in Ventura County and later while attending Hughson High School outside of Modesto in 1986.

His Hughson High photo is the featured image used for this article.

Despite his identification, crucial details surrounding Joe's whereabouts and the circumstances around his death remain unconfirmed and the Cold Case Unit is now turning to the public for help in their ongoing investigation.

If you knew Joe Reardon or Joe Gilbreth, even just in passing, you are asked to share those details with the Cold Case Unit at 805-383-8723.