By Shawn Jarrard
Towns County Herald
Editor
The Georgia Bureau of Investigation began a death investigation Tuesday, Jan. 2 regarding human skeletal remains discovered by the Towns County Sheriff’s Office off Gumlog Road the evening of New Year’s Day.
After securing the area, Sheriff Ken Henderson requested the state’s assistance. GBI agents traveled to Towns County on Jan. 2 to examine the scene, collect evidence and transport the remains to the GBI Medical Examiner’s Office for identification and autopsy.
The remains were found outdoors on a property containing a vacant home in the 8000 block of Gumlog Road near the intersection of Barnard Road.
Though the deceased had not been definitively identified by press time, GBI said that “at this time, we have reason to believe the individual is not from the area.”
A public release of case specifics is on hold for now, as the investigation by the GBI and Towns County Sheriff’s Office remains active.
Among the questions remaining to be answered are facts about identity, cause and time of death, how long the deceased lay undiscovered, how the individual came to be there in the first place and circumstances surrounding the discovery.