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On Jan. 19, a citizen searching for arrowheads in a field on the east end of Chadell Road discovered what he believed to be human bones. He notified the Washington Parish Sheriff’s Office and detectives were dispatched to the scene.

 

Washington Parish detectives determined the bones were likely human and began to process the scene. The following morning, crime scene technicians from the Louisiana State Police Crime Lab and the LSU Forensic Anthropology and Computer Enhancement Services (FACES) laboratory arrived on the scene and worked to process all evidence. The bones were removed by FACES technicians and taken to their lab for further analysis.

 

Although the crime scene was on the border with St. Tammany Parish and there was some question about which parish the bones were in, Washington Parish detectives took the lead in the investigation. Since that time, after a determination that the bones were indeed located in St. Tammany Parish, the investigation has been turned over to investigators from the St. Tammany Parish Coroner’s Office. That office, along with FACES, continues with forensic procedures in an attempt to identify the male individual whose bones were located.

 

If anyone has any information about the possible identity of the deceased individual whose remains had been at that location for an extended period of time, they are asked to contact Detective Captain Raymond Meyers at (985) 661-2024.

 

“There are still many unanswered questions concerning this death,” stated Sheriff Randy Seal. “Although the St. Tammany Parish Coroner’s Office has taken the lead in this investigation, our detectives are still actively involved. Anyone who knows of a male who has been unaccounted for during the past few months is asked to contact Captain Myers. The person could have been local, but it is possible he was from a nearby parish or Mississippi county.”