Human skull, remains discovered in West Valley pond, investigation underway

WEST VALLEY CITY, Utah (ABC4) — Human remains were discovered in a pond in West Valley City on Tuesday evening, according to police.

Authorities initially received a call about a possible human skull and other bones being found in the water near 4220 West Lake Park Blvd. The West Valley City Police Department said the bones were found near the edge of the pond.

When authorities arrived at the scene, they found the skull, along with other bones, and confirmed that the remains were human, a spokesperson with WVCPD told ABC4.com.

“The medical examiner‘s office is working to retrieve the remains and will attempt to determine the identity of the person,” WVCPD said in a social media post Tuesday night. “At this time, we have no information about a cause nor manner of death, nor do we have any information to identify the person.”

Officials said the death is being considered a suspicious death, but it is too early to tell if foul play was involved. The investigation is ongoing.

“When skeletal remains are found, we collaborate with law enforcement and the state forensic anthropologist to evaluate if the remains are human remains and if they are ancient or modern,” a spokesperson for the Utah Department of Health and Human Services said in a statement to ABC4.com.

According to the DHHS, ancient remains are under the jurisdiction of the state forensic anthropologist. On the other hand, the Office of the Medical Examiner (OME) takes jurisdiction of modern remains and works to identify them with several other agencies and specialists.

However, the DHHS was not able to provide a statement about this specific case due to Utah law, as records from the OME are considered confidential.

The day after the remains were found, ABC4.com went to the area where the bones were discovered by the fisherman and spoke to people at a nearby golf course.

When asked how he felt upon hearing the news of the discovery, Provo resident James Kuechmann said, “It was shocking.”

“It’s just not something you hear every day,” Weston Halper, from Park City, told ABC4.com. “There’s human bones on the course you’re golfing on.”

Additional details about the remains are expected to be released by officials as they become available. There is no further information at this time.

Matthew Drachman, McKenzie Diaz, and Maclane Westbrook contributed to this report.