Construction workers find human bones in backyard

Construction workers found human bones while digging up a concrete slab in the backyard of a Milwaukee home.

Capt. Michael Young of the Milwaukee Police Department confirmed the workers turned up plastic wrap containing what appeared to be human remains with their shovels Aug. 8 after the homeowner hired them to dig out the slabs behind his newly renovated home. The workers ran to a fire station across the street to notify firefighters, who called police.

The next day police found a second set under another concrete slab in the yard.

Capt. Eric Moore told the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel a medical examiner verified the remains were those of an adult human, but he declined to reveal approximate age or sex. An autopsy will be performed.

“We don’t know who it is,” Moore told the Journal. “At this point, we’re treating it as a possible homicide.”

Neighbors told the Associated Press a major fire occurred at the home last year, but the home had been repaired and new residents moved in recently.

Police Capt. Tim Burkee told AP high-tech sonar equipment might be used to scope the entire yard.