A perfect crime, but it never should have been.

Two youths, walking late at night along a lonely road in the early morning hours of July 17, 2002. Two youths, one already dead and one near death, spotted on Cashdollar Road in Forward Township by a motorist, who called 911. No clear-cut evidence remaining at the scene to let investigators know how the youths died.

Were both youths — Scott Fosnaught and Shawn Baur, then both 15 — struck by a single vehicle? Was one of them struck by a vehicle while the other was injured fatally in an attack that followed?

Was there something more sinister in play that led to their deaths?

So far, the deaths have defied the saying “there’s no such thing as a perfect crime.” Until investigators involved in the case obtain a critical piece of evidence or are helped by someone’s guilty conscience, the mystery surrounding the youths’ deaths will remain and the case will continue to be unfinished business for law enforcement agencies.

Fosnaught already was dead of upper body injuries when the youths were found during the early morning hours of that day a decade ago. Baur was found alive near Fosnaught, but he died later of head injuries, without being able to provide any details about what had happened.

Almost from the start, there was speculation about how Fosnaught and Baur had died and who was responsible. Meanwhile, investigators concluded that a vehicle was involved.

Judging from investigators’ inability to solve the case, if a vehicle was involved, it left no evidence on the boys’ bodies or elsewhere at the scene. Apparently no vehicle body shop came forward following the deaths with suspicions about damage they were asked to repair.

During what has been 10 long years for the victims’ families, no one has come forward with the critical piece of evidence that would complete the Fosnaught-Baur puzzle — despite a $23,000 reward fund for an arrest and conviction.

State police continue to remind people to call them at 724-284-8100 with any possible evidence or suspicions about the case.

Something seemingly unimportant could end up being a critical piece of evidence.

Prior to meeting their tragic fate, the two Seneca Valley students had been at a friend’s home, before spending the evening at a nearby pond. They apparently were walking toward Baur’s Watters Station home when whatever occurred happened, ending their lives.

Most troubling is that whoever was responsible for their deaths is free, having escaped punishment.

Even if the boys’ deaths were merely the result of an accident and no foul play was involved, the case expanded beyond accident the moment the motorist involved chose to drive away, either stemming from a callous attitude or panic over the consequences of what happened.

Lonely road, late at night, uncertainty over whether the youths did something to provoke their fate. And if they were for some reason targeted, why? The mystery has entered its second decade with no closure in sight for the boys’ families.

A so-far perfect crime that continues to stymie investigators.

Someone continues to live with a heavy burden on his or her conscience that that person so far has been able to keep in check.

It’s not an enviable burden, no matter what circumstances led to the events of July 17, 2002.

Investigators continue to hope for a break — a lead for which the Fosnaught and Baur families continue to pray.