Another body discovered near airport
Second time this month human remains found.
WEST PALM B EACH — A decomposing body was found in a canal bank on Southern Boulevard near Palm Beach International Airport on Monday afternoon, according to the Palm Beach County Sheriff ’s Office.
At 6 p.m., detectives were called to Haverhill Road and Southern Boulevard, just west of the airport, where what are believed to be human remains were discovered.
”Due to the advanced decomposition of the body, detectives have called a forensic anthropologist to assist with the investigation,” spokeswoman Teri Barbera wrote in an email.
The Sheriff ’s Office kept the scene secure overnight until the anthropologist arrived in the morning. Once they finished in the area, the remains will be brought to the Palm Beach County Medical Examiner’s Office.
On Tuesday morning, there were several investigators at the scene, both on the canal bank and on a boat.
Raymond Lee Taylor Jr., a homeless man who frequents the area, said he discovered the body Monday afternoon while searching for a friend he had not seen in weeks.
Taylor said the man, who was also homeless, had complained of feeling ill the last time he saw him.
“I was sitting here (holding) a sign and he was laying under the bridge,” Taylor said. “He said ‘Ray Ray, I’m sick.’”
The Sheriff’s Office did not confirm whether the deceased was homeless or discuss what caused the person’s death. Investigators also did not disclose the per- son’s name.
Taylor said the man was in his early 50s and had been homeless for about five years.
Taylor said he last saw the man “18 days ago.”
“It’s sad,” he said as he watched several investiga- tors from the Sheriff ’s Office and other agencies examine the scene Tuesday morning.
This is at least the second time this month the Sher- iff ’s Office has responded to human remains found near a canal along South- ern Boulevard. On March 7, a fisherman noticed a “foul order” on the 13000 block of Doubletree Circle on the northern edge of Wellington. Investigators later discovered the smell was coming from the decomposing remains of Stanley Parrales. The 49-yearold Palm Beach chef was reported missing from his Lake Worth home on Feb. 20, according to the Sheriff ’s Office.
Investigators arrested Robert William Thompson in his death on March 8. He is being held without bail.