Police estimate how old unidentified skeletal remains found in Searcy are

SEARCY, Ark. - Police are sharing new information on skeletal remains found over the weekend in Searcy, including how old authorities estimate the remains are.

Although there are some missing person cases decades old in the town, at this time police estimate the remains found Friday afternoon were weeks to months old, not years.

Searcy Police Chief Steve Hernandez said a homeless person made the discovery around 4 p.m. That person informed another person who informed the police.

Responding officers found multiple scattered bones between South Poplar Street and Hubach Loop within sight of Highway 67/167.

Chief Steve Hernandez of the Searcy Police Department said the FBI Evidence Recovery Team assisted because the woods were so dense. Finding all they can is crucial to getting answers from the Arkansas Crime Lab.

“The first step is to find out who it is", Hernandez said. "The more that we can get, the better our chances are of getting DNA results back, also the more that we can find, we can possibly see if there is any trauma to parts of the body.”

Hernandez said they are looking at missing person cases in and around Searcy as part of the investigation but have not ruled out homelessness or even homicide until they can learn more.

"It's unfortunate but it can at least give them some closure and from that point, we can begin the investigation into what happened to the person," Hernandez stated.

Authorities did not find any identification and couldn’t tell the gender of the person the remains belong to.

“We’re hoping that this person or a loved one of this person have their dental records on file or their DNA on file. That would definitely speed up the process that would give us a starting point", Hernandez said.

According to Chief Hernandez, the last time unidentified skeletal remains were found in Searcy was in 2019. A man missing for 20 years out of Louisiana was found in what appeared to be a sleeping position on Riverview School District property. Hernandez said that skeleton was "very well intact."

from KARK https://ift.tt/CMdeD5Y