EPSO investigating human remains found in Security-Widefield

EL PASO COUNTY, Colo. (KRDO) -- The El Paso County Sheriff's Office (EPSO) is currently conducting an investigation into human remains located at Pinello Ranch off Highway 85.

The sheriff's office held a press conference around 4:30 p.m. It has ended, but we will add the recording to this article once it's finished uploading.

According to EPSO, a utility worker called law enforcement on Thursday morning after making the discovery near a drainage pond. Detectives and members of the mounted unit are conducting a search by horse, allowing them to see over tall, grassy areas.

The sheriff's office says the coroner will need to explicitly confirm if the remains are human. The coroner's office will also need to determine how old the remains are; the sheriff's office did not speculate.

Colorado Springs Utilities (CSU) tells KRDO13 that Pinello Ranch is used for multiple things.

Pinello Ranch, which was acquired by Colorado Springs Utilities in 1972 and includes water rights, serves multiple purposes today that include:

• Fountain Creek Recovery System detention ponds
• Wetland banks for future water projects
• Farming Operations to utilize water rights for beneficial use (lease)
• Rocky Mountain Lineman School (lease to State)
• Indoor and outdoor storage of equipment for Springs Utilities operations
• Daily operations of water infrastructure on site

Our Security and Raw Water Operations staff conduct daily activities at the approximately 230-acre site, which abuts Fountain Creek.

- A CSU spokesperson

Details at this time are limited. A KRDO13 crew is en route to the scene.

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