Human Bones Found Near Junkyard In Lake Station, Ind.
LAKE STATION, Ind. (CBS) -- The Lake County, Ind., coroner is set to examine some human bones, which were found in a wooded area near a junkyard in Lake Station.
Lake County Chief Deputy Coroner P.J. Adams said the bones found about noon on the east side of Lake Street near Paul's Auto Yard are human.
The county pathologist will study the bones, then officials will determine if the evidence should be sent to University of Indianapolis forensic anthropologist Stephen Nawrocki for further review.
Coroner's investigators found an Indiana identification card with the body.
"That should help us expedite learning who this person is," Adams said.
With a name, investigators can obtain dental records to confirm a possible identity, he added.
Two Gary detectives working a burglary detail were checking records at the junk yard when a scrapper told them of a body nearby.
Two police investigators walked along a well-worn path about 50 yards from the street and found the bones, which appeared nearly intact. Some clothing remnants were also at the scene.
Adams said the sex and race of the body are unknown, but the remains appeared to have been there for "quite some time."
This is the second time that human bones have turned up in overgrown areas in Northwest Indiana.
When police arrived, they discovered a human skull, remnants of clothing and other bones at the site. The neighborhood is largely a wasteland, with only a few houses among numerous vacant lots. Trash, chunks of concrete and even an abandoned row boat are strewn about the area.
Investigators said there was likely at least one body at the scene.
Less than two weeks later, more bones were found in the 3500 and 3600 block of Chase Street near a set of railroad tracks in Gary, but while authorities initially believed they were human, they were later determined to be from a dog.
The Northwest Indiana Post-Tribune contributed to this report, via the Sun-Times Media Wire.
(Source: Sun-Times Media Wire © Chicago Sun-Times 2012. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.)
