Tragedy has struck the small town of Cadillac, Michigan, with the grim discovery of a 55-year-old man's body found charred and buried behind his home. Michigan State Police made the chilling find last week during a property search after the man was reported missing on February 20, his belongings including a truck, phone, and dog left untouched at his residence, FOX 2 Detroit reported.
State Troopers noticed an area of the ground that had been recently disturbed during their investigation, which prompted an excavation on February 23. They unearthed "large chunks of burnt wood, tires, remnants of burnt clothing and a piece of apparent flesh," according to upnorthlive.com. The MSP Grayling Crime Lab and detectives were subsequently called in to assist at the grisly scene, unearthing a body further into the investigation.
An autopsy conducted by the Western Michigan University Department of Pathology ultimately confirmed the identity of the deceased as the missing Cadillac man. In addition to the body, the MSP Computer Crimes Unit gathered digital evidence, including data from a home security camera system and the victim's phone, as mlive.com reported.
Two suspects are now on the authorities' radar, with reports indicating that they were living with the victim prior to his disappearance. While they are currently held in separate jails on unrelated charges, police revealed that they are known narcotic users and distributors. According to statements obtained by mlive.com, this case continues to be under active investigation as law enforcement pieces together the harrowing events leading to the man's death.
