Backyard excavation in connection with a 2009 missing person case Friday morning uncovered a human skull and additional human remains, said LA Sheriff's Homicide Lt. Victor Lewandowski.
At this point, it is not known if the remains are those of the missing person. Coroner's investigators are leading the recovery, and will attempt to use such technologies as dental records and DNA matching to make identification, said Assistant Chief Coroner Ed Winter. Even with the missing person as a starting point for comparison, the process could take three or four days, Winter said.
New information led authorities to pursue a search warrant in connection with the case of a person who disappeared in 2009.
Vehicles and equipment from both the Sheriff's Department and the Coroner's Office are stationed in the 700 block of Elsberry Avenue, in a neighborhood in the area of La Puente and Valinda. The rear of the yard is separated from Valinda Avenue by a concrete block wall.
Investigators have an idea how someone else could have entered the yard to bury human remains, Lewandowsky said, but are not prepared to discuss it at this point in the case. The subject of the 2009 missing persons case was identified only as an adult, who was not a resident of the house.
"It's early and it's a very tedious process," said Lewandowski Thursday.
Hours after combing through the yard, detectives had yet to encounter any confirmed human remains. But with a cadaver dog indicating that there is something to be found, a call went out for additional equipment to continue the search.
Late in the day, word of the search brought members of another San Gabriel Valley family who have not seen a loved one since 2008 to the house. The mother and brother of Liliana Rangel said the closeness in time of disappearance raised their concerns. Lewandowski said detectives would speak with them.
If remains are found in the backyard, the case will become a homicide, said Lewandowski, and that is why authorities do not want to release the name of the missing person until they have confirmation.
Local
Get Los Angeles's latest local news on crime, entertainment, weather, schools, COVID, cost of living and more. Here's your go-to source for today's LA news.
Another investigation was underway about three miles from the excavation site. The homicide investigation on Janetdale Street in Valinda was not connected to the backyard search.
