A group of children playing outside near Lakeland on Thursday made a grisly discovery: human remains.
Polk County Sheriff Grady Judd said human bones were found at the edge of a cow pasture near Fish Hatchery Road and Morgan Combee Road at around 6 p.m.
The children, ages 6, 7, 8, 11, and 12, ran to inform their parents of the discovery, but had to do some convincing before one of their parents finally believed what they were being told.
When one of their mothers found the skull and three vertebrae, law enforcement was called to the scene.
Judd emphasized that the remains, while they have yet to be identified, are not believed to be that of Tonya Whipp, Ethan Fussell, or Savannah Mahoney, all of whom went missing from the area.
There was no obvious damage to the skull, and no cause or time of death have been determined at this point, Judd said. As of Friday, law enforcement was actively searching the area for the rest of the body.
The sheriff also said it isn’t uncommon for animals to move body parts on decomposing bodies, so it is not necessarily suspicious that only some remains were found.
The body could be that of a homeless person, Judd said, but there are no known homeless camps in the immediate area, and an autopsy showed extensive dental work, which is not common among homeless populations.
While he was hesitant to share any preliminary details about the remains, Judd said investigators are leaning toward them belonging to a man in his 30s or 40s. However, that information is subject to change pending new discoveries.
Judd asked for the community’s help, specifically residents who haven’t seen or heard from a relative in some time or believe someone they know is missing. While the remains have not been there for very long, they have been there long enough to be in advanced decomposition, the sheriff said.