A fully intact, skeletonized human mandible is seen in this Bear Lake County Sheriff’s Office photo on Thursday, July 27. The jawbone was discovered by a group of beachgoers who were digging in the shores of Bear Lake on the Idaho side. (Photo provided by Bear Lake County Sheriff’s Office)
PARIS, Idaho — The Bear Lake County Sheriff’s Office said investigators had discovered more bones and bone fragments where a group of beachgoers unearthed a fully intact human jaw on Thursday.
On Friday, Bear Lake County Sheriff Bart Heslington provided new details on human remains that were found in the sand along Bear Lake in Idaho. He said the recreationists made the discovery Thursday shortly before noon.
He described how some young men were digging in the sand and unearthed what they believed at that time to be possibly skeletal human remains. The sheriff and additional deputies responded to the scene and confirmed the discovery.
The entire jaw, from the hinge point around, seems to be primarily intact, Heslington said. It was found on public property, where the lake visitors had dug several shallow holes in the damp sand, with the deepest being approximately two feet deep. The sheriff’s office was coordinating on the investigation with the Idaho Department of Public Lands, which manages the beach.
A section of the popular beach, which the sheriff described as “elbow to elbow along the shoreline” during any typical day in the summer, remained cordoned off to the public on Friday.
Heslington said sheriff’s deputies did not continue digging in or near the holes dug by the lake visitors Thursday, and the site remained cordoned off Friday.
He then contacted the Idaho State University’s anthropology department, which he said would elevate the investigation by expanding the expertise pool.
The fluctuating Bear Lake waters meant the site in question typically spends a portion of the year submerged, and as the summer continues, the waters recede and expose the beach again.
Officials didn’t have any immediate leads into the person’s identity, and Heslington said law enforcement records didn’t offer much in the way of missing persons.
He explained that researching the files from the Bear Lake County Sheriff’s Office, they do not have any cold cases involving unrecovered remains or unrecovered subjects. They have not had cases where someone has gone missing on the lake, whether in a boating or swimming accident or anything like that, that have not been recovered.