The homeless man who was found dead on the banks of the Animas River last month died from an overdose of a cocktail of drugs, a final autopsy report released Monday confirmed.
On May 21, the body of Randy Shaw, a transient better known as “Kansas,” his home state, was found on the west bank of the Animas near West Park Avenue.
A toxicology report showed he had “fairly high levels of numerous drugs with extremely high levels of methamphetamine.” The autopsy concluded the manner of death was an accidental overdose, and there was no evidence of foul play.
According to Shaw’s family, the 40-year-old man was a veteran who turned to living on the streets more than a decade ago. He was happy in his travels, they said, but suffered from drug addiction.
His 41st birthday would have been on June 23.
The whereabouts of Shaw’s traveling partner, a brown-and-white pit bull mix named Johlene, remain unknown. The family wanted to recover Johlene as a means of remembering their late brother.
The autopsy report said a dog toy was found among Shaw’s belongings.
jromeo@durangoherald.com
