SHIRLEY, Mass. — Investigators returned to Phoenix Pond in Shirley on Thursday morning after human remains were found the day prior.
Dive teams were seen in the water and groups of investigators could be seen going door-to-door.
As investigators continued their work, neighbors were still grappling with what could’ve led to the situation.
“This is really weird, really suspicious,” Katy Marsh said.
“It’s kind of odd, we’re in a little small neighborhood here,” Justin Walsh said.
“Why would anyone put a body part in a local pond where all the children go?” one neighbor questioned.
The Middlesex District Attorney’s office reported it was a group of young people who were walking by the Maritime Veterans Memorial Bridge when they saw what they believed to be a body part in the water.
Katy Marsh lives nearby and said she was walking her dog near the bridge at the time. She said she saw that group of kids that she estimated to be around 13-to-14-years-old.
“They were dry heaving into the snow bank saying ‘that’s so messed up, that’s so messed up’” Marsh said.
Justin Walsh lives down the road and said his stepson is friends with the group who made the disturbing discovery. He said a photo of the body part was circulating in their group chats.
“From what I saw, it looked like a foot or some sort of leg and foot,” Walsh said.
When Katy Marsh was walking her dog, she said she heard someone down near the riverbank say ‘Yep, that’s a leg. That’s a right foot, right leg.’"
The DA said preliminary information in the investigation suspects foul play but did not indicate why they suspect a crime took place.
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