Missing man's body discovered in desert

In the 1995 film "Casino" one of the biggest fears for the gangsters was being taken for a drive into the desert and not coming back.

That fear has become a reality for some as the desert continues to produce bodies of murdered residents and tourists.

There have been 51 homicides in Las Vegas so far this year and five of the bodies were found in the valley desert, Metro Police Homicide Lt. Wayne Petersen said.

"That's a little less then 10 percent," Petersen said. "Probably not as many as you might think, but the problem is how many are out there that we haven't found?"

One body that has been found is that of 64-year-old Samuel Agustino Paterniti who was discovered by a bicyclist who stopped in the desert Saturday to investigate. Paterniti was reported missing by his family Wednesday.

The woman, riding on Centennial Parkway about two miles west of U.S. 95 in northwest Las Vegas, found Paterniti's body partially buried under a pile of rocks. He was last seen at 10 p.m. a week ago today on his way to a Price Rite store.

"It was a normal place for him to go in his daily schedule," said Terry Rusmisel, Paterniti's daughter. "We're clueless as to what happened. We don't know if it was a crackhead trying to have a good time or a robbery."

Paterniti's silver 1979 Ford Fairmont with Nevada license plate No. 942EFH is still missing and could be a key piece of evidence, Petersen said.

An exact cause of death is pending a medical examination by the Clark County coroner's office, which should be finished Wednesday according to a coroner spokesperson.

"He did not have Alzheimer's, and he wasn't on any medication," Rusmisel said. "He was a sturdy old man that was a ball of fire."

The recovery of Paterniti's body is a good example of why it is not impossible to find missing bodies in the desert, Petersen said.

"Even though his body was partially buried you could easily identify that there was a body," he said. "Most murderers do not go to a lot of work to dispose of a body.

"A lot of these are crimes of passion or impulse and they aren't very well planned."

It is almost as if many criminals feel that if they drop a body in the desert it will never be found, but according to Petersen there are a lot more people in the desert then one might think.

"There are people out in the desert all the time," Petersen said. "Target shooters, bikers, hikers and off-road vehicles are often out there."

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