"No suspicious circumstances," say police after bag of human bones found in Doncaster

Police launched an investigation after building workers made the grim discovery near to St Wilfrid’s Church in Cantley earlier this week.

Officers cordoned off a 50 metre area on Monday outside the cemetery in Church Lane when two workmen discovered bones – including a skull – behind a wall just outside the graveyard.

In an update, South Yorkshire Police say they are satisfied the bones are from several decades ago – and work to trace the remains is being carried out with “sensitivity.”

A spokesperson said: “At around 9.50am on Monday 6 October, we received a call to report that remains had been found near Church Lane in the Cantley area of Doncaster.

“A scene has been established near to the church yard of St Wilfrid's Church while enquiries are carried out.

“It has been established that the remains are human bones. It is believed these date back a number of decades and officers do not believe there are suspicious circumstances.”

Detective Chief Inspector Simon Cartwright said: “We are looking into the circumstances which resulted in these bones being found by contractors carrying out works in the area.

“We are acutely aware these remains are somebody's loved one and we assure the local community that we are carrying out our enquiries with all of the sensitivity you would expect”.

“Early forensic analysis has been completed, and we believe no suspicious circumstances surround them.

"Once our enquiries are complete we will work closely with the church with a view to ensuring the remains are respectfully returned to a final resting place."

The workers were clearing a top level of overgrowth with a digger so they could install a wooden fence when they uncovered a black plastic bag containing what they described as a 'dismembered body'.

One worker - who does not want to be named - told of his horror at the gruesome discovery.

He said: "We were removing a top layer of grass and soil next to a four-foot stone wall so we could drive in some fence posts about a metre behind it.

"The area we were digging was about three metres from the closest grave.

"We must have removed one or two feet worth of overgrowth when we came across the black plastic bag.

"It split and all of a sudden bones and a jaw still containing teeth rolled out in front of us.

"We were shocked when we saw the bones as it isn't something you dig up every day.

"It's almost as if someone has chucked the bones behind the wall and put some grass and soil over them to hide it."

The workers informed their company of the discovery who then contacted the police.

They said within a couple of hours police arrived and cordoned off the area before crime scene investigators probed the remains.

Images show a jaw still with its teeth intact inside the plastic bag next to a pile of bones including what he believed to be a skull.

The workers said nothing else was found inside the bag.