UPDATE: Additional remains of discovered infant located at Wewa Burger King

UPDATE: 5:55 P.M.:

In a press release, GCSO confirmed that additional remains belonging to the infant were discovered during their two subsequent days of searching at the construction site where the infant’s body was discovered on Tuesday.

No additional bodies were discovered.

“Areas of the construction site identified by cadaver K-9s were searched utilizing ground penetrating radar (GPR). Numerous anomalies were detected by the GPR and examined. Investigators excavated dirt, which was sifted by hand, to search for additional human remains or evidence,” read the release. 

“As a result of the extensive search, investigators were able to locate additional remains of the infant that were not discovered during the initial find.”

The site was relaesed to the construction company to resume work on the Burger King.

GCSO is awaiting more information from the Medical Examiner’s office, where they say the infant’s remains are being examined by a forensic anthropologist.

UPDATE: 11:30 A.M.:

GCSO and FDLE cleared the scene at around 11:30 a.m. CDT on Thursday after almost three days of investigation.

The crime scene tape has now been removed from the construction site, and investigators are no longer at the scene.

PREVIOUS REPORT:

Investigators began their third day at the construction site for Wewahitchka’s new Burger King this morning,  where they continue to search for evidence related to the discovery of infant remains at the site on Tuesday.

Sheriff Mike Harrison said their priority is to rule out any possibility of additional bodies.

“Yesterday, we had cadaver dogs… and they hit on a few locations,” Harrison said. “And here we are today, concentrating on the area where the cadaver dogs hit to see if there is a possibility of any more gravesites here, and any more remains.”

“We’ve got FDLE here today. They have a ground-penetrating radar… They’re able to detect that from there. Then, we’ll get that dirt and put it through a sifter, kind of like at an archaeological site, and determine what the anomaly was in the reading.”

The infant remains were discovered by a construction worker in a pile of dirt at the site at around 2:45 p.m. on Tuesday, May 31, according to a press release from the Gulf County Sheriff’s Office.

They were described as being “mummified,” which the sheriff said indicates they are believed not to be recent, though investigators were not initially able to pinpoint the age of the remains.

The Medical Examiner’s Office for Florida’s 14th Judicial Circuit received the remains on Tuesday evening. A preliminary autopsy report is expected Thursday afternoon.

“We hope to receive that this afternoon,” Harrison said, expressing that GCSO hopes it will reveal more information. “There will probably have to be additional studies that are done on the remains.”

Harrison described the situation as “bizzare,” expressing that there are many possible explainations for the sitation.

Dirt has been brought into the site from at least three different counties, the sheriff said, and investigators have not ruled out the possibility that the remains were brought in from elsewhere.

However, Harrison said that while investigators are aware of rumors spreading throughout the community, the evidence has not yet confirmed any particular theory.

“There may only be one person on this planet that actually knows what happened with this situation,” he said. “And we can’t speculate. We hear a lot of rumors and a lot of theories that come in, which is only natural for people to do. That we understand, but we have to go on where the evidence leads us.”

“We know the history of the site here. It was a funeral home for many years, and you know, there’s a lot of speculation going on there, but the fact is we can’t prove anything as of right now. So I will continue to look into it and do the best that we can to get some answers.”

This report will be updated as more information becomes available.