Human Remains Found in Missouri Prompt Death Investigation

Sheriff's deputies in southwest Missouri have opened a death investigation after a surveyor found skeletal remains in a brushy, wooded area in north central Jasper County.

Jasper County Sheriff's spokesman Capt. Derek Walrod says the remains were reported to authorities at 12:30 p.m. Wednesday. The Joplin Globe reports deputies were still collecting the remains about five hours later.

Walrod says the remains were not a complete skeleton, but were definitely human.

He says it's not known whether the remains are those of a male or female, or how long they have been there. Investigators also were still trying to determine where the remains would be sent for forensic analysis.

Walrod says the exact location of the discovery is being withheld to preserve the integrity of the scene.