Resolved UK - Whitstable, Kent, Multiple Remains in bags, Jan'19 - historic/middle age

[Al Ka]

Whitstable contractors find human remains on building site

Human remains have been found buried on a building site by contractors carrying out excavation work.

Police were called to the site at about 13:00 GMT on Monday 28 January after the discovery in Shaftesbury Road, Whitstable, Kent.

Bones from "at least six bodies" were discovered buried "in two black plastic bags", Kent Online reported.

The bones were found in one small area of the site which had been undergoing excavation work for the past six months, Kent Police said.

Experts have confirmed the bones are human and are now working to establish their age, in a process which could take several weeks.

Human bones found buried on building site

 

[Mrs. Badcrumble]

Bones from "at least six bodies" were discovered buried "in two black plastic bags"

Too early to say anything, really, but Peter Tobin was the first thing that popped into my head... We'll just have to wait for the updates.

 

[msphilosopher]

* cringe *

 

[spangled]

Oh my goodness! Well at first glance I thought maybe they were really old bones but the plastic bags negate that...

 

[Vern]

Too early to say anything, really, but Peter Tobin was the first thing that popped into my head... We'll just have to wait for the updates.

Aussi moi-même. Thought so myself too. 6 lost --- begin their journey homewards; it's a good day.

 

[Elainera]

Bones from 6 people in two bags - the bodies must have been stored/hidden elsewhere previously, and when reduced to bones, collected and put in the bags. How odd. Somebody had 6 bodies lying around but as skeletons didn't want them anymore. Why? Wanted to sell the house so the evidence had to go?

 

[Vern]

Bones from 6 people in two bags - the bodies must have been stored/hidden elsewhere previously, and when reduced to bones, collected and put in the bags. How odd. Somebody had 6 bodies lying around but as skeletons didn't want them anymore. Why? Wanted to sell the house so the evidence had to go?

Too true. Thank goodness "foul play is suspected" as well eh?? I get a chuckle with that.

If adults/teen and 6 in 2 bags - obviously must be skeletal and a re-burial from another scene.

Another thought I had a few minutes ago, was maybe infants?? We've had the case where a woman hid her multiple deceased infants in flower pots, one where suitcases were involved etc. Even with that though, has to be a re-siting from another location.

I'm hoping this one brings some answers and some lost victims back home.

 

[Mrs. Badcrumble]

Somebody had 6 bodies lying around but as skeletons didn't want them anymore. Why?

Could be a case of grave robbing, though. Relocation of cemetery, perhaps? It's just too little information yet, so the discussion so far is only limited to speculations until the case updates.

 

[coffeeandacig]

Seems there was an old auto repair garage on the site.
Any SK's known for being in the auto repair business?

 

[Al Ka]

Aussi moi-même. Thought so myself too. 6 lost --- begin their journey homewards; it's a good day.

Just to add from article - Bones from "at least six bodies"

 

[SandyQLS]

I thought of this serial killer Robert Black. He was thought to have many more victims, drove a lorry all over UK, Ireland and the continent. Vicious and Evil.

Robert Black (serial killer) - Wikipedia

 

[Al Ka]

Bones from 6 people in two bags - the bodies must have been stored/hidden elsewhere previously, and when reduced to bones, collected and put in the bags. How odd. Somebody had 6 bodies lying around but as skeletons didn't want them anymore. Why? Wanted to sell the house so the evidence had to go?

My exact thought too, that this is not their original burying place.

We know that murderers almost always come back to scenes of crimes, but also often re-bury or move the bodies to different locations too.

Various reasons - first place was picked in urgent hurry..., or later that spot became too risky, or too close to home or yes, things might have changed - moving house etc.

What is significant here is that re-burying 2nd time in this case, was done quite some time after their original burial as they were all already skeletal. Probably years. And then hmm to get them from their first place and deciding to bag them all into 2 trash bags hmm. It takes "special" person to do that.

I wonder if all died at the same time or in different time frames.

 

[Vern]

Just to add from article - Bones from "at least six bodies"

Oy. Thank you. Never heard of his guy. Down a rabbit hole go I.

 

[Al Ka]

Seems there was an old auto repair garage on the site.
Any SK's known for being in the auto repair business?

I have checked the map and Whitstable is very small town right on the east coast.

Shaftersbury street is is very short street in residential area and just few streets away from sea. There are/were two car parks there on that street and MOT/car repair place. Some or all of them are being worked on now.

What a weird place to bury someone unless it was done many years ago.

Map - Google Maps

 

[Al Ka]

I have found two further articles which were published few weeks ago. So bones were not discovered on 28th January but actually on 21st January

===
Police were called to a premises off Shaftesbury Road - thought to be a site formerly owned by Days Garage - at 1pm yesterday, after the bones were discovered by contractors carrying out groundwork on the site.

Enquiries are now ongoing to establish the age of the bones and whether they are human.

Bones found at building site 'could be human'


Remains unearthed at a building site in Whitstable have been confirmed as human.

The bones were discovered at the Days Yard site in Shaftesbury Road, where contractors are carrying out groundwork for a new 17-home development.

Police were called to the scene at about 1pm on Monday, and forensics teams were at the site all day yesterday.

Human remains unearthed in town centre

 

[Al Ka]

Daily mail with more details

===

Stunned builders found hundreds of bones from up to six people buried in black plastic bags on the site of an old garage.

Contractors using a digger found a rubble bag buried six feet below ground at the location in Whitstable, Kent, on January 21.

Realising it contained bones, they called police, who found a second bag with a forensics team.
---
Canterbury Archaeological Trust's archives manager, Andrew Richardson confirmed the remains were from multiple people.
---
It is not clear how many bones were in the second bag, or why they were buried, but black plastic bags first came into use in the 1950s.
---
'An osteologist could establish how many individuals are present and provide estimates of their ages at death and biological sex.

'These bones have been in the ground for some time, how long is hard to say.'

Robert Green, OBE, a leading forensic science lecturer at Kent University, said police should look into 'missing persons'.

He said: 'Investigators will be doing their work on things like missing persons, were there any reported homicides at the time.
---
Nine houses and eight flats are to be built at the site, which was formerly a Days Garage.

While the history of the land is unclear, city councillor Brian Baker recalled a car firm being there 60 years ago.

He said: 'I lived in Middle Wall at the Days Garage end in the early 1960s.

'My brother and I often played with the son of the garage's owner, in the scrap cars parked in the compound.

'Although this is now a dry area, it was once the beachline, before the Island Wall was built to prevent the sea encroaching onto the land.'

Workers find hundreds of bones from up to six people buried in black plastic bags on building site | Daily Mail Online

 

[SandyQLS]

Daily mail with more details

Workers find hundreds of bones from up to six people buried in black plastic bags on building site | Daily Mail Online

Oh I just had to blow the photo up and look. Does anyone else think the large bones look like they have been sawed straight? Some of the large ones with knob ends look like humerus and femur bones, cut off straight in the long portions, not just broken away with decay.

No one would cut up the bones of deceased persons other than after foul play?

 

[CoverMeCagney]

Thanks for starting the thread, @Al Ka
That photo of all the bones is horrific but thanks for giving me a slightly smutty giggle with knob ends, Sandy!

 

[Gracie55]

Thanks for starting the thread, @Al Ka
That photo of all the bones is horrific but thanks for giving me a slightly smutty giggle with knob ends, Sandy!

Horrific. Maybe DNA can help ID.

 

[CoverMeCagney]

Anyone else kinda hoping this solves 6 missing person cases in one go?!

I'm trying to think... which serial killer was it who recently had a mechanics pit excavated in their mums garden? Was it the Suzy Lamplugh suspect? And I'm sure there's another fella who always drove different cars. Brain not quite switched on yet...