JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – Police were investigating Thursday morning after human remains were found buried in the backyard of a Jacksonville home, according to the Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office.
The owner of the home, located on Sunny Acres Drive in the Magnolia Gardens neighborhood, said he discovered “toes sticking out of the ground” as he was doing some yard work, according to a woman who was helping the owner with the yard work.
“We were working inside the house and then the owner came to us and said ‘Hey, there is something here. We have to call 911. I said OK. I was shook,” the woman, who did not want to be identified, told News4JAX.
The source shared photos with News4JAX of what appeared to be a human foot sticking out of the ground.
“They were all black and stuff. But I guess that was from decomposing,” the woman said. “I just hope that everything gets solved. My reaction to this is just craziness. I would never expect this, especially at a house that I am working at.”
Workers told News4JAX they were doing renovations at the rental property when they made this gruesome discovery.
“Me and my son, we both was here and we were just looking around trying to see what else we need to do to the house. We put new windows and new kitchen and bathroom. Just trying to make it right for the next homeowner,” the homeowner, who did not want to be identified, said. “I want to offer my condolences to the young person or to the person they found at my property. No family at all should have to go through that at all. That’s the first thing I want to say. No family should have to go through that. I don’t know who that is, I don’t know what the situation is.”
JSO said they were called to the scene Wednesday night.
Florida Gulf Coast University’s forensics team along with JSO was on the scene for hours conducting their investigation.
News4JAX saw three blue tents in the backyard, where investigators were sifting through dirt.
Cassandra Womack has lived in that neighborhood for seven years and said she’s shocked by the news.
“This is a quiet neighborhood, so this is something that rarely happens. I still feel safe here, and we all know each other and we’re like family,” Womack said.
It’s now up to the medical examiner’s office to determine who this person was, and exactly how they died.
“The body tells you everything about the case and in this particular case, when it’s a buried body, there’s usually some extensive level of decomposition,” News4JAX Crime and Safety Analyst Tom Hackney said.
Hackney oversaw these types of investigations throughout his nearly 30-year career in law enforcement. He said this is a meticulous process.
“It may take days before they actually get to the point where they render a decision that gives to the investigators who this is. Investigators want that quicker because once again when you start that murder investigation to figure out who somebody is, that’s the first piece of the puzzle that you need to try to figure out what happened to them,” Hackney said.
Neighbors just hope there will soon be answers.
“That’s a hurtful feeling, having someone that’s lost and you don’t even know what’s going on with them. I’m praying for the family, I know that’s going to be detrimental to them,” Womack said.
Earlier Thursday, some people came by the property hoping to find out if this person was their loved one who’d been missing for some time.
The case is now pending the medical examiner’s final report.