Lansing police brought in an MSU Anthropology team to assist after human remains believed to be several years old were found in Lansing on Saturday, according to WLNS. The Medical Examiner’s Office is working to identify the remains, and the investigation is ongoing.
Dr. Joe Hefner, associate professor of anthropology and a board-certified forensic anthropologist, said formal analysis had not begun when WLNS 6 News spoke with him Monday. He described in general terms what skeletal remains can offer investigators.
“We can look at the bones and determine the age, sex, stature and at times population affinity,” Hefner said. “We can also tell things about past injuries and health disparity.”
Those characteristics form a biological profile, and Hefner said investigators use it “to develop a short list of potential individuals.” From there, they search antemortem records for missing people who match. Dental records, medical imaging and, in some cases, DNA can then help establish an identification, WLNS reported.
Michelle Fox, chief investigator for the Medical Examiner’s Office, told WLNS that cases involving skeletal remains can take time and that the timeframe for completion can’t be determined. If investigators develop no leads after 30 days, she said, case information can be submitted to a national database that compares missing and unidentified people.
Anyone with information is asked to contact the Lansing Police Department at 517-483-4600 or Crime Stoppers at 517-483-7867.
The skeleton shown on camera during the interview is not connected to the case. WLNS’s on-screen text says the remains represent an individual who donated their remains to science for research and education.