GLENDALE, AZ – The Glendale Police Department is reaching out to the public to help identify human remains that were discovered earlier this month in a backyard near 51st Avenue and Cactus Road. The body was found by a landscaping company that was hired to address the overgrown grass in the yard. The workers noticed a foul smell which led them to the remains.
According to the police, the residents of the house were oblivious to the presence of the remains in their backyard. “The body was found in an area of the backyard that wasn’t frequented by the family who was living there,” said Jose Santiago, a Glendale Police public information officer. A gun was also found at the scene. However, the police are still unsure about the cause of death and how the body ended up in the yard.
The body was found on June 8, and the police speculate that the individual died several months before the body was recovered. Due to severe decomposition, identification was challenging. Based on their investigation, the police believe that the remains belonged to a teen boy, aged 15 to 16, with brown hair and approximately 6 feet tall.
Local residents expressed their shock at the discovery, with long-time resident Russell Cox stating that in his 30 years of living in the neighborhood, there had never been any such incidents.
For now, the police aren’t aggressively pursuing any suspects. “Our goal is to try and identify this individual and get whatever family is associated with this person some type of closure,” Santiago commented. Anyone with knowledge regarding the case has been urged to contact the Glendale Police Department.