Search for Human Bones Continues in Rocky Mount Pond

Officials drained about five feet of the man-made pond Monday night to try to get a good look at what was underneath.

They say the bones might not have been visible before a worker from a nearby metal company discovered a skull Monday.

Officials say if the remains entered the pond as a whole body, they would have taken at least four or five months to deteriorate to such an extent. They say if thatishow the body got in the pond, it probably has been there a while.

There also have been people in the area who dig up bones from graves and throw them in the water as a Halloween prank. Authorities have not ruled out that possibility.

Investigators expect to be at the pond for several days. A forensic team from Chapel Hill is on-site and will take the evidence and see what they can figure out.

While they look for more information, police are checking missing persons records both locally and in other counties. They say that so far this skeleton is not an obvious match for any case.

"It would do us wrong if we mess something up and we have to come back," Rocky Mount police Lt. Wayne Sears said. "It is going to be a very slow, painstaking process, but I'm sure that the time we take here will be worth it as we get down the road and try to put something together as to why we're here and why we found this here."

No information has been released on the age or gender of the person whose remains were found.