Human remains found in Milwaukee's McGovern Park

MILWAUKEE -- Human remains were found Wednesday afternoon, March 28th on an island in Milwaukee's McGovern Park lagoon near 51st and Silver Spring. Clothing and jewelry were found nearby.

The remains were found in a heavily wooded area of the island by a USDA worker who was on the island working on some research related to goose eggs.

Officials say the remains are badly decomposed which would indicate they have been there a while - possibly months.

A dive team was on the scene Wednesday afternoon, along with Milwaukee Police Department and Milwaukee Fire Department officials.

Officials say they cannot determine whether the remains are male or female. Those officials also say it's too early to say whether foul play is a factor in this case. "At this time, we are going through our missing persons records, and if there's anything further that we need from the community, we will ask for further assistance at that time," Sgt. Shelley Metzler said.

Neighbors who visit McGovern Park daily are concerned. "I ain't coming to this park no more. This is a good park. It's a proper park. Everybody be over here fishing, playing. Kids and all this stuff be in this area," Diamond Thomas said.

Many neighbors visit the park often. There are some walking paths around the lake and a bridge across it, so the fact that the remains have been in the park for awhile is disturbing to many. Many neighbors didn't know there was an island in the middle of the lagoon, which may explain why the remains went undiscovered for quite some time.

Police say their investigation is ongoing and say it will likely be long-running.

Monitor FOX6 News and FOX6Now.com for updates on this developing story.