The story commenced with the investigators summoned to the scene where a fourth body had been found: that of a heavily built man, completely denuded of skin. The corpse was inside a car, which was in turn hidden in a small coppice, some 900m from State Road 20 (Atlanta-Columbia via Augusta). The car is a late model Cadillac Seville, burgundy in colour, registered to Adolph, aka Stephen, McKerath.
The two front seats were both folded back to their full extent, creating a sort of bed inside the car. The body was lying on its back, between (but largely supported by) the two seats, with a leg on each side of the gearstick. The inside of the vehicle was sprayed, spattered with blood- the body is almost completely desanguinated, and his bowels had voided. Forensic examination indicated that death had occurred approximately ten days earlier. Wasps had found their way in through the moon-roof, and were busy in the pool of fluid beneath the corpse.
There are no clothes in the car, nor was there any sign of the missing flesh. The police did immediately notice the content of the trunk, however: a US Army mortar (100mm calibre), 20 fragmentation shells, and a sniper-rifle. This is why the ATF were called.
After Muller and Davis shifted the ordnance to their own car, close examination of the scene could continue. Agent Schuster and Assistant ME John McAvoy examined the body in situ and discovered a loaded .44 calibre revolver in the pocket on the driver's door. They also discovered a 1.5mm diameter catheter on the floor under the seat- it was covered in blood.

While still at the scene Muller and Davis were able to call up a great deal of information about Stephen/Adolph McKerath. His name is well known to a number of local and Federal agencies, due to long-term connections with a number of militant right-wing groups. McKerath is a wealthy man, owner of a chain of bulk hardware suppliers that flourished during the 1970s and 80s, gaining a number of lucrative government contracts.
Over the years McKerath used his wealth to bolster a number of right-wing fringe political movements (he was a Grand Dragon of the Klu Klux Klan in the mid-to-late 1970s). He has no criminal record, but was arrested twice in the 1970s in connection with violence that erupted in Atlanta over bussing school children. The cases against McKerath never made it to court.
Unconfirmed reports indicate that MacKerath was active in the 1960s funding Cuban "resistance" operations against Castro's Cuban government, and may have been involved in similar activities in support of the Contra rebels in Nicauragua during the early 1980s.
In 1981 McKerath stood for the State Legislature, but his opponent, Adrian Hynes, and local media made great play of his past membership in the KKK. McKerath's candidacy was a complete failure, he attracted less than 20% of the vote. It is believed that this had a great deal to do with his decision to found the Georgia Citizen's Militia.
The GCM is a semi-secret band of "freedom loving" individualists, with approximately 100 members, who are dedicated to the armed preservation of America's Constitutional rights. It has been scrutinised by the ATF and the FBI on a number of occasions, since many of its members have a history of criminal involvements. The militia's "headquarters" are located in the southern part of Georgia, just outside Waycross. McKerath changed his name from Steven to Adolph in 1990, at the same time as he sold his chain of building supplies stores.

Departing the scene of crime, Brown, Muller and Davis retired to a nearby steakhouse for dinner, to discuss the case, and to get to know one-another. The three suspected that they might have been followed from the scene, and this was confirmed several minutes later when their car alarm screamed from the parking-lot. Rushing outside, they caught a glimpse of a pickup-truck accelerating onto the highway. Muller rushed after it, and had a brush with death when a car narrowly missed running him down. The pickup disappeared. Davis inspected their car, and found signs that someone had tried to break in. The agents returned to the restaurant where they continued to discuss the case. This occasioned a number of complaints from other diners, some of whom could clearly hear the less pleasant details of the scene. The waiter made several attempts to persuade the investigators to change the topic.
Meanwhile, Agent Schuster returned to the Atlanta Medical Examiner's building, in the convoy of official vehicles that carried the car and the corpse back for examination. Closer inspection of the corpse revealed that death was caused by rapid, massive bloodloss when the aorta burst. The victim's lungs appear to be diseased, as they are covered in a mass of lesions: the bursting aorta collapsed, tore and flooded the left lung, which allowed a vast amount of blood to be expelled through the mouth and nose. This explained the blood-spattered car, but does not reveal why the victim did not die earlier from blood lost in the skinning process.

Agents Muller, Brown and Davis were interrupted by sherrif's deputies who had been called to the restaurant by the staff, and were asked to leave (they were upsetting the other diners). After a short confrontation Agent Muller was removed forcibly. The County Sherrif arrived on the scene, as did two more cruisers. After an extended shouting match (during which Muller was shut up in one of the prowl cars) Special Agent Brown was able to calm the situation. The three agents left immediately and were followed to the county line by local law enforcement.

Day two of the investigation commenced with a press conference: the media are making an enourmous story out of "The Atlanta Skinner", and representatives of TV, radio and print media crowded into the conference, which was carried live by CNN. It was announced that a joint taskforce had been formed, consisting of Lt Allan John Astrand, Sgt Jesus Desoto, Sgt Morrison Belworth and Sgt Patrice Clarke of the Atlanta PD together with the agents. Kathy Manasis' name was released, her relatives having been contacted by authorities in New York the night before. The agents were introduced to the Atlanta PD Commissioner, James Lee McHale, and to a number of technical specialists within the Atlanta PD. They also met the police Media Liaison Officer, Sgt Earl Heineman, who conducted the conference from his wheelchair.

During the morning further information came to light, as enquiries started the day before began to bear fruit:
(1) Forensic analysis revealed that the dead man in the car died about eight days previously, which places the date of his death before that of Ms. Manasis.
(2) The catheter was found to contain traces of Neurephiprine, an experimental drug (not yet approved by the FDA and consequently illegal for unlicenced use in the USA) only available in France. Neurephiprine is a powerful vasoconstrictor, which can be applied topically to produce exsanguination of the epidermis. Injected, it causes systemic vasoconstriction, massive increase in blood-pressure and heart rate. It carries a high risk of damage to the kidneys, liver, eyes and brain, but is still used in some cases to assist with lipo-surgery. Inhalation of Neurephriprine is fatal in 3 to 6 minutes.
(3) The mortar (and ammunition) are US-Army issue, and are missing from the command arsenal at Ft.Benning. Their absence had not yet been detected. An officer from the USACIC will be seconded to the investigation (Capt Peter Kerr).
(4) A soldier, Cpl John Wayne Owen, dissappeared from Ft.Benning 9 days ago. He had access to the arsenal.
(5) The AR15 rifle was stolen 16 months previously from a gun dealer in Orlando, Florida. The laser designator and LI sight were both supplied six weeks ago, by an Atlanta gun shop: Owen's Gun Bazaar. The gyro stabiliser is of German manufacture, and its sale is restricted in the USA: there is no record of the unit entering the country. There were two sets of fingerprints on the rifle: those of Mr.McKerath, and of another, unknown subject.
(6) The .44 Ruger is registered to McKerath, and his were the only prints found on it.
(7) Katherine Block, McKerath's ex-wife, is believed to live in Hawaii. They seperated and divorced in the early 1970s. They have one daughter, Leanne MacKerreth (30), whose whereabouts are unknown.

After the meeting the agents went to Owen's Gun Bazaar to question staff. Their investigations revealed little, although David Clarke, the sales-clerk who sold the gunsight, was as helpful as possible. He could not remember selling the items, but was happy to point out others on sale in the store. He could not state categorically that John Wayne Owen is unconnected with the store, but explained that the business was bought with a pre-existing name, which was retained to aid in name recognition.

While en route back to Atlanta PD the agents received notification via radio that the fourth body had been positively IDed via dental records as Adolph McKerath. Accordingly they flew down to Waycross with Sgt Belworth to interview members of McKerath's household, and seek any evidence about his activities that might shed light on his death.

While in transit they contacted ADA Maurine Kearnes who obtained a search warrant for the McKerath property: a copy was waiting for them on arrival. They next contacted Sheriff Morgan T Beauregard, and asked him to accompany them. The Sheriff was happy to oblige.
The house is secured by an elaborate perimeter consisting of fences (partially electrified), movement sensors, surveillance cameras and automatic gates. The residence is in turn hidden from observation by a 4m earthen berm that completely circles the buildings. This is supplemented by a thickly planted belt of trees: together these act as an impenetrable shield. Although suspicious at first, the Militia members opened the compound gates once Sheriff Beauregard explained that the agents were present to investigate McKerath's death.
Inside the perimeter the investigators found the berm encloses the residential building, vehicle garages, farm workshops and a moderately sized dam and poultry barn. The residence is a single story building, of white, painted stone and brick. The ceilings are of a generous height and the floors are raised almost a metre above ground-level, so the building is quite imposing from outside. There are few external windows, and those are sited high in the walls. The building encloses a central courtyard, which accessed on all sides by collonaded walkways.
During their visit the agents met a dozen militia members. Although cautious they were not hostile, and were shocked by the news of McKerath's death. They said McKerath left two weeks before on an interstate business trip, but did not give further details, saying that he had kept his business private. They did, however, note that McKerath has connections in Central America. They were unable to think of anyone who might have reason to want to kill McKerath, as he has little involvement with politics anymore.
While walking through the house Muller noticed a photo of one of the militia squatting in the door of a Huey, posed with an M60 machinegun suspended from a bungee cord. Muller recognised this as a common means of arming helicopters donated by the US Government for civilian aid purposes overseas. The man in question, David Bell, is no more than thirty so this is clearly a recent photograph.
In McKerath's personal rooms they found a sizeable library, dealing with biography, military and American history, the Nazi Party and right wing politics. On his bedside table were Mein Kampf and The Catcher in the Rye. The agents secured McKerath's personal computer and some floppy disks, and then left the premises.