Memphis police have found the remains of three children in an area of woodland, saying they had probably been there “for several years”.
Police said the children are believed to have been between three and seven years old.
“This is heartbreaking, is disturbing, and at this time, we have numerous resources to help us to identify these young people and bring closure to this investigation,” said Cerelyn “CJ” Davis, the Memphis police chief, in a news conference.
The first remains were discovered on 8 March when an anonymous caller reported a possible human skull near a wooded area in the Hickory Hill area south-east of Memphis, Tennessee. During a subsequent search of the area, dogs alerted investigators to a nearby drainage pipe, indicating possible human remains, NBC News reported.
When the drainage system was inspected using cameras later in March, police located what appeared to be an additional skull. A further search this month revealed 14 additional bones “consistent with human remains”.
Davis said the remains were believed to be from three children, and an investigation is under way to determine the identities and the circumstances of their deaths.
“Somebody knows where these children have come from. Someone knows of missing children that we have discovered in this area,” Davis said, adding that a review of recent missing persons reports did not find any matching profiles.
“We know that this individual was not, or these individuals were not, persons that were reported out of our area,” Davis said.
