Human Remains Found In Burned Out Car In Hialeah
HIALEAH (CBSMiami) – Human remains were discovered in a burning car early Monday morning in Hialeah.
The car was located in an industrial area of the city at West 80th Street and 21st Lane. Hialeah firefighters were called out around 3 a.m. to a vehicle fire.
After extinguishing the flames, they discovered the remains inside the car which had burned down to its frame. Firefighters found at least one body and police are looking into the possibility that a second person was inside the car. It's unclear if the remains were found in the front or trunk of the car.
"Forensics will go through the vehicle and determine exactly how many human remains they found inside that car," said police spokesman Eddie Rodriguez.
Investigators sifted through what they could of the car and surrounding area for evidence that they say someone intentionally meant to destroy.
"The fact that the vehicle was set on fire makes everything a little more difficult," said police spokesman Eddie Rodriguez. "The vehicle is very damaged, so right now we have to go through the whole process. We need to first identify the vehicle, figure out what kind of car it was and who it belongs to and start from there."
Police have so far not been able to identify the make and model of the car.
Business owners and neighbors were stunned by the images of charred car with human remains inside.
"I got up this morning and got a call from my employees that they couldn't get in the parking lot," said Juan Hernandez, who for two years has owned Atlantic Marine in the same warehouse plaza.
Hernandez told CBS4's Peter D'Oench, "I was just freaked out that this happened. We have never heard of this happening before. This is a safe area. We have never seen something like this. If you know something you should come forward and say what the situation is."
"Crime is very high in Hialeah," said Roy Mastrapa who works in the area. "Lately you turn on the TV and it's every day something happens, every day. You go out in the street and don't know if you're going to come back the next day."
Detectives have pulled surveillance video from warehouses in hopes it gives them a lead as to what happened.
Rodriguez said police hope witnesses will come forward. He told D'Oench that the vehicle, which looked like a Mercedes Benz, was taken to the Miami-Dade Medical Examiner's Office.
Anyone with information is urged to call Hialeah Police or Miami-Dade Crime Stoppers at (305) 471-TIPS (8477).
