Two weeks ago, human remains were discovered at a construction site near Elm Lane in the Nayatt Point neighborhood. A few days later, a 71-year-old Barrington resident told police he suspects the remains may be his grandmother. 

The resident stopped at the station on Thursday, Sept. 26, and told officers that when he was younger, his mother told him that her mother, his grandmother, had gone missing many years earlier. He estimated the year as 1931. 

The resident told police his grandfather might have been to blame; he said his grandfather worked as a butcher and had a violent temper. 

Police recorded the account shared by the 71-year-old Barrington man and then sent the information to the medical examiner’s office. 

Police would not comment further on the situation. However, last week police confirmed that only partial remains were found on Elm Lane — not a complete skeleton. A separate source said the bones that were discovered appeared to have been cut up into pieces. 

In addition, officials said the bones appear to date back 75 to 100 years, putting them close to the 1931 date. 

The medical examiner’s office is examining the remains and is expected to release findings in the next few weeks. 

The discovery

On Thursday, Sept. 19, a crew was digging in an area just a few feet from Elm Lane when it discovered skeletal remains believed to have been there for a long time. They called Barrington Police, which responded to the scene and began an investigation. After determining the bones might be human, police notified the Rhode Island Medical Examiner’s Office.

Several pieces of evidence were transported to the medical examiner’s office, and a preliminary review determined they were in fact human skeletal remains. A visual inspection of the evidence coupled with the location suggest the burial is not a recent event.

On Friday, Sept. 20, the Medical Examiner’s Office responded to 56 Elm Lane, along with Barrington Police Department’s Detective Bureau. Additional evidence was recovered and turned over to the Medical Examiner’s Office. The joint investigation is continuing.

A small area where the remains were found has been taped off, and the construction crew has been given the green light to resume work at the site.