Utah Teen Finds Ancient Remains in Backyard

A Utah teen digging a trout pond in his backyard unearthed human remains that turned out to have been there for at least a thousand years. The teen's father called police after a skull and other bones were found and the case was turned over to archeologists after medical examiners in Salt Lake City found that the remains belonged to a Native American who lived around 1,000 years ago, the AP reports. "Humans have occupied this valley for up to 10,000 years," a Utah Department of Heritage and Arts spokesman tells the Salt Lake Tribune. "We do run into situations where progress runs into the ancient past."

The teenager says that when he first made the find, he thought it was animal bones. "When I saw it looked like a human skull, then it definitely was a bit creepy," he tells ABC4. "I really do think there's other bones nearby, and I don't think that it's that unlikely or that lucky that I stumbled across this." The trout pond is now on hold while experts examine the site. If researchers can determine the ancient body's cultural affiliation, tribal representatives will be able to claim the remains for interment. (More Salt Lake City stories.)