Investigators with the Lee County Sheriff’s Office and the South Carolina Law Enforcement Division continue working to positively identify the remains of two people found burned inside a sport utility vehicle Monday.
A gas company worker found the burning truck sitting along the Lynches River on Field Bridge Road, which sits near the Lee State Park Road and the I-20 intersection Monday.
Inside the vehicle, authorities found skeletal remains of two people.
Lee County Sheriff’s Major Daniel Simon told News13 forensic pathologists were using dental records and DNA to identify the pair, and investigators could name the victims within the next few days.
Simon said SLED’s Auto Theft Task Force agents uncovered a vehicle identification number from the SUV’s chassis and planned to use the number to find the vehicle’s owner.
The VIN will tell investigators the make, year, model, and color of the vehicle.
The license tag was completely destroyed in the fire, Simon said Thursday.
Investigators think the victims are from Florence and have interviewed family members who reported the pair missing, according to Simon.
Crime scene investigators found several shell casings inside the vehicle Monday, but don’t think the casings were fired, or have anything to do with the deaths, Simon said.
Investigators sent the casings to SLED’s ballistics examiners to see if they were fired or are linked to the deaths, according to Simon.
Florence County investigators searched a home thought to belong to the victims Monday night, but didn’t find any clues as to what happened to the pair, Simon said.
There were also few signs left behind at the scene Monday that could lead investigators to what started the fire inside the SUV, Simon said.
Simon couldn’t say if foul play was involved in the deaths Thursday, but said when autopsies are complete, investigators will have more clues to provide answers as to what happened Monday.
Email
Facebook
Google
Twitter
Favorites
More
Advertisement