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NYPD Investigates Human Remains Found In Queens, Possible Link To Avonte Oquendo
By
Jen Chung
Published Jan 17, 2014
Modified Jan 17, 2014
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By
Jen Chung
Published Jan 17, 2014
Modified Jan 17, 2014
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Last night police received a 911 call about human remains found in College Point, Queens, near the East River, and found a possible arm and legs on the rocks. The family of missing teen Avonte Oquendo have been alerted about the discovery.
The remains, which the Medical Examiner's office will be examining, were found near Powell Cove Boulevard and Endeavor Place. WCBS 2 reports, "Sources said the sneaker found at the scene Thursday may match the one the teen was wearing when he went missing." However, sources tell NBC New York that the hand was attached to the arm and appears to be from an adult.
The remains were apparently discovered by a 14-year-old, a police source tells the Post: She "initially... wrote about the discovery on social media before alerting authorities... 'Instead of calling 911 right away, she got on Twitter and talked about it,' the source said. 'Then she finally told her mom and they called 911.'"
Avonte went missing on October 4 from the Center Boulevard School in Queens. Because he is autistic, the authorities launched a wide effort to find him, with the MTA postponing track work so its employees could search the system (Avonte loves trains) and the NYPD used infrared cameras and broadcast a message from Avonte's mother over loudspeakers. The school and Department of Education have been faulted with mishandling his disappearance.
One police source tells the Daily News, "The concern is obvious. When you have body parts, there’s the obvious question about what happened. Was there a murder, or a drowning with bad decomposition?"
Tagged
avonte oquendo
body
college point
east river
human remains
missing
queens
Jen Chung
Jen Chung is a former WNYC and Gothamist editor.
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Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
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