Ladera Heights

Bones Found Underneath Ladera Heights Home

Homicide detectives were investigating bones found underneath a Ladera Heights home, sheriff's officials said Friday.

The discovery was made Thursday morning by a worker who was inspecting the foundation of the home in the 5900 block of Wooster Avenue, the Los Angeles Sheriff's Department said.

The homeowner told NBC4 the worker had handed him the bones after coming out from the crawl space. Not knowing if they were human or even real bones, he said he was in no rush to call police. His wife, who is a doctor, later called authorities to report the bones, which she said resembled a femur and a fibular.

Cadaver-sniffing dogs were brought to the home to help sheriff's and coroner investigators. The remains are most likely human, according to the coroner.

"What we do know is it appears these bones are several years old," sheriff's Lt. Steve Jauch said. "It is a possibility that those bones may have been here even before the house was built."

The house was constructed in 1955, the homeowner said.

Sheriff’s investigators will contact every person who has ever lived in the home and look through old missing persons cases from the area.

No further information was provided by the sheriff's department.

The homeowner said about 10 people have had access to the crawl space while working on the home since he and his wife moved in a year and a half ago.

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