IDAHO COUNTY, Idaho – The Idaho County Sheriff’s Office and multiple officials from state universities have been investigating after human bones were found at a beach on the Salmon River near White Bird.
The Sheriff’s Office was notified back on Sept. 16 when people at the beach located small pieces of bone appearing suspicious to them about 10 miles downriver from White Bird on the Salmon River.
“The bones were found in a remote location, under the high water mark, at a back eddy and nearly entirely under sand and silt,” ICSO said in a release.
The small bones were turned over to the Sheriff’s Office, and based on photos sent to Forensic Anthropologist Sara Getz at Idaho State University, she confirmed they were of human origin but couldn’t make any further conclusions.
Later in September, citizens took ICSO officials to the location of the bones for the first part of the excavation processm, but it was later determined hat they would seek professional assistance to recover the skeletal remains due to the nature of the excavation site.
On Oct. 1, ICSO officials and Doctors from the University of Idaho Anthropology Department were transported by a citzens’ boat to the site to continue the excavation. Upon collecting all of the remains, they were packaged and turned over to Dr. Kate Koplan for further testing at U of I.
The ICSO says most of the skeletal remains of one adult were recovered, but at this time there is no specific information regarding a possible identity or length of time the remains had been at the location. U of I continues to conduct more testing in search for more possible info.
“The Sheriff’s Office would like to thank all of the individuals who assisted in the recovery efforts, especially John and Alyssa Adkison for assistance and use of their personal jet boat to assist the ICSO,” they said in the release.
