{"id":12344,"date":"2026-06-30T10:41:31","date_gmt":"2026-06-30T14:41:31","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/ww2.georgiasouthern.edu\/news\/magazine\/?p=12344"},"modified":"2026-06-30T10:41:31","modified_gmt":"2026-06-30T14:41:31","slug":"decoding-death-the-unique-science-of-georgias-top-bug-expert","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/ww2.georgiasouthern.edu\/news\/magazine\/2026\/06\/30\/decoding-death-the-unique-science-of-georgias-top-bug-expert\/","title":{"rendered":"Decoding Death: The Unique Science of Georgia\u2019s Top Bug Expert"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image alignwide size-full\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1700\" height=\"729\" src=\"https:\/\/ww2.georgiasouthern.edu\/news\/magazine\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/SU_4357.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12346\" srcset=\"https:\/\/ww2.georgiasouthern.edu\/news\/magazine\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/SU_4357.jpg 1700w, https:\/\/ww2.georgiasouthern.edu\/news\/magazine\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/SU_4357-250x107.jpg 250w, https:\/\/ww2.georgiasouthern.edu\/news\/magazine\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/SU_4357-550x236.jpg 550w, https:\/\/ww2.georgiasouthern.edu\/news\/magazine\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/SU_4357-100x43.jpg 100w, https:\/\/ww2.georgiasouthern.edu\/news\/magazine\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/SU_4357-768x329.jpg 768w, https:\/\/ww2.georgiasouthern.edu\/news\/magazine\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/SU_4357-1536x659.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1700px) 100vw, 1700px\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-luminous-vivid-amber-background-color has-background wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Warning:<\/strong> the following article is graphic in nature and is not suitable for all readers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">The Gruesome Scene at the Portal Hunting Club<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Georgia Bureau of Investigation Agent Brett Dickerson got the call on a chilly Friday afternoon in December 2022. The Liberty County Sheriff\u2019s Office found a woman\u2019s remains scattered across the grounds of the Portal Hunting Club. They found her torso first.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cThe scene was gruesome,\u201d Dickerson admitted. \u201cBut as a professional in this situation, your wheels really start turning as you try to figure out what happened.\u201c<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Dickerson, a crime scene specialist, ensures the evidence collection process starts as soon as possible.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cWe wanted to learn as much as we could about the original portion that was found,\u201d he said. \u201cOnce we arrived, we quickly realized that there were other pieces of her that were missing.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Days later, the woman\u2019s leg was found in an advanced state of decomposition. As he watched maggots crawling across the remains, Dickerson realized he would need expert help to find her killer.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cI knew I had to call Ed,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Georgia Southern University Biology Professor Ed Mondor, Ph.D., is more than just the top forensic entomologist in the entire state of Georgia \u2014 he\u2019s the only one. He uses insects recovered from bodies to develop a timeline of when a death occurred. Whenever bugs are collected at a crime scene with fatalities, he\u2019s the first call agents and officers make.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cIf anyone could figure it out, it was him,\u201d said Dickerson.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Mondor was in a hurry to get to his lab at Georgia Southern the day the evidence arrived. Timing is critical in cases like these.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cInsects cannot regulate their own body temperature, so they function as a sort of biological clock,\u201d explained Mondor. \u201cOnce they come in, they go straight under a microscope for analysis. This is when the clock starts ticking.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">He starts his analysis by determining what larval stage the bug was found in.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cWhen a body is found with insect evidence on it, I simply work backward to figure out when that body first became a hospitable environment to the insects that were found,\u201d he explained.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The body parts were eventually identified as those of Savannah resident Mindi Kassotis. Her husband, Nicholas Kassotis, was charged with her murder.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cThere\u2019s a huge responsibility that comes with this work,\u201d said Mondor. \u201cYou have to be certain with the science, because someone\u2019s life is hanging in the balance.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The next few weeks were a blur for Mondor. If he wasn\u2019t teaching or sleeping, he was shut away in his laboratory, eyes glued to his microscope, analyzing the insects removed from Mindi\u2019s body.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cUsing the evidence collected, I determined that her remains were colonized between Nov. 27 and Nov. 29,\u201d said Mondor. \u201cIt wasn\u2019t until later that the prosecution revealed video camera evidence of Nicholas\u2019 car going back and forth to the scene from where her remains were found. Our timelines matched up very, very well.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Mondor\u2019s testimony, combined with other investigative efforts, led the jury to find Kassotis guilty of his wife\u2019s murder. He received a life sentence and will never be eligible for parole.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cI always tell people what I do is probably one of the most rewarding jobs there is,\u201d Mondor explained. \u201cThere\u2019s a peace of mind I get to bring to families who need to know how long their loved ones have been deceased.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-pullquote\"><blockquote><p><strong><em>\u201cIf I can make even one person realize their potential in the field of forensics , that will make me a happy man knowing that\u2019s the legacy I can leave behind.\u201d<\/em><\/strong><\/p><cite><strong>\u2014 Ed Mondor, Ph.D.\u00a0<\/strong><\/cite><\/blockquote><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">The Great Turkey Caper and Other Local Mysteries<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image alignright size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"550\" height=\"367\" src=\"https:\/\/ww2.georgiasouthern.edu\/news\/magazine\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/SU_4189-550x367.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12348\" srcset=\"https:\/\/ww2.georgiasouthern.edu\/news\/magazine\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/SU_4189-550x367.jpg 550w, https:\/\/ww2.georgiasouthern.edu\/news\/magazine\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/SU_4189-250x167.jpg 250w, https:\/\/ww2.georgiasouthern.edu\/news\/magazine\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/SU_4189-100x67.jpg 100w, https:\/\/ww2.georgiasouthern.edu\/news\/magazine\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/SU_4189-768x512.jpg 768w, https:\/\/ww2.georgiasouthern.edu\/news\/magazine\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/SU_4189-1536x1025.jpg 1536w, https:\/\/ww2.georgiasouthern.edu\/news\/magazine\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/SU_4189.jpg 1700w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 550px) 100vw, 550px\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Mondor also assists the Statesboro Police Department<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">with investigations.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cOne time, Statesboro PD got a tip that there was a body in a trash can outside of a convenience store,\u201d explained Mondor. \u201cHalf the cops in town were at this trash can when I pulled up.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The trash can was full of bones, covered with bugs. Mondor and his graduate assistant, Gillian Johnson, got to work examining the evidence.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cI\u2019m not a bone guy,\u201d said Mondor. \u201cI do know one, though. He\u2019s pretty good.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Mondor called Georgia Southern Professor Matt Williamson, Ph.D., who specializes in human anatomy and physiology. He would be able to help investigators understand what they were looking at.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cMatt took one look at the bones and started chuckling to himself,\u201d said Mondor. \u201cHe picks one of them up and says, \u2018Well\u2026I know they belong to a bird. They look like giant turkey legs.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Case closed. But this wouldn\u2019t be the only time Mondor called on a Georgia Southern colleague to help with his investigations.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cI got called in on one case where officers found a person\u2019s remains in a really dilapidated home with no central heat or air,\u201d he explained. \u201cThe body was in a really advanced state of decomposition.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Mondor quickly realized he was the one who needed expert help this time.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cClimate plays a crucial role in developing a death timeline,\u201d Mondor explained. \u201cSo I knew I would have to figure out what the temperature inside the home was leading up to the time of death. But I don\u2019t know how to do that.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">He reached out to the Allen E. Paulson College of Engineering and Computing for help. That\u2019s how he met David Calamas, Ph.D., a mechanical engineering professor specializing in heat transfer.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cWhen we first met, David was quick to tell me that he probably wouldn\u2019t be able to help, as he had no expertise in forensic science,\u201d said Mondor. \u201cI explained to David that I see these cases as puzzles that need to be solved. All scientists are always looking for a new challenge.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Calamas\u2019s expert knowledge of heat transfer, combined with Mondor\u2019s guidance, made him a major asset in the case.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cDavid was able to build a computer simulation to determine what the temperature was inside the home before death,\u201d explained Mondor. \u201cThat helped us establish the timeline of death for police, which they used to close that case.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">The Future of Forensic Science at Georgia Southern<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Mondor credits collaborative relationships with fellow academics like Williamson and Calamas as just one way that Georgia Southern is setting the standard for forensic studies in the state.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cThis is a field that requires a lot of expertise from a lot of different people,\u201d he said. \u201cWe have these skills right here on campus, from talented professors who might not know or even think they can contribute to forensics. But they can.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">That\u2019s why he\u2019s so excited about Georgia Southern\u2019s first-ever Center for Forensic Sciences, which opened in January.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cWe\u2019ll be able to bring these experts who work in different areas of forensics and completely different colleges for the first time,\u201d explained Mondor. \u201cThey can share their expertise in both teaching and research to help prepare the next generation of forensic scientists.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">As with any professor, Mondor is excited to watch his students plan for their future.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cI think Georgia Southern is really good at getting students to the finish line in their undergrad, but we also excel at helping them figure out what that next step in their career will look like,\u201d he said. \u201cI really view this Center for Forensic Sciences as another resource that can help them get to that next step.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Mondor said he can\u2019t wait to see what\u2019s next for forensic sciences at Georgia Southern.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cMy dream is to train students using the incredible pool of resources we have right here at Georgia Southern,\u201d he said. \u201cIf I can make even one person realize their potential in that field, that will make me a happy man knowing that\u2019s the legacy I can leave behind.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-text-align-right wp-block-paragraph\"><em>\u2014 Bradley Mullis<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Warning: the following article is graphic in nature and is not suitable for all readers. The Gruesome Scene at the Portal Hunting Club Georgia Bureau of Investigation Agent Brett Dickerson got the call on a chilly Friday afternoon in December 2022. The Liberty County Sheriff\u2019s Office found a woman\u2019s remains scattered across the grounds of [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":17,"featured_media":12346,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[4],"tags":[91,92],"class_list":["post-12344","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-research","tag-fall-2025","tag-spring-2026"],"aioseo_notices":[],"aioseo_head":"\n\t\t<!-- All in One SEO 4.9.9 - aioseo.com -->\n\t<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Warning: the following article is graphic in nature and is not suitable for all readers. 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