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Spokane, Washington  Est. May 19, 1883

Police find box containing children’s bones in Missoula home

Authorities say a box containing bones and teeth that are believed to be from three children was found in the shed of a Missoula home. (KTMF)
Associated Press

MISSOULA – Law enforcement officers in western Montana have a “person of interest” they want to interview after a box containing the bones and teeth of three children were found in the shed of a Missoula home in September.

A cleaning crew found the box when a tenant was evicted from the property.

Missoula Police Sgt. Travis Welsh told the Missoulian on Wednesday the person authorities want to interview is not considered a suspect.

The remains have been submitted to the National Missing and Unidentified Persons System, which is run by the U.S. Department of Justice.

The federal lab will try to test the remains for DNA to see if the children are related and if the results match any missing children’s cases, Welsh said.

The state crime lab determined the remains were human. An anthropology professor at the University of Montana estimated the ages of the children to be 2-4 years old, 5-8 years old and 6-10 years old and said the remains were likely modern and not archaeological. However, it is not clear when the children died.

Detective Guy Baker is looking to interview any former residents or neighbors of the house.