Two Hall County residents have been arrested while authorities investigate whether recently discovered skeletal remains belong to an elderly person reported missing from their home.
Monica Duffie, 42, and Crayg Dykes, her 24-year-old son, were both arrested Wednesday and charged with various offenses, including drug possession, fraud and tampering with evidence. Additional, much more serious charges could be coming, police say.
The investigation began Sunday when a person searching for Native American artifacts discovered a partial human skeleton in the woods near Capitola Farm and Spout Springs roads. It was unclear what led authorities to Duffie and Dykes, but Hall County Sheriff’s Office spokeswoman Deputy Nicole Bailes said in a news release Thursday that “the Flowery Branch Police Department and the GBI are investigating whether the found skeletal remains could have belonged to a missing elderly person from their residence.”
That missing person’s identity was not released. Flowery Branch Police Chief David Spillers said the remains were those “of a white male with grey or greying hair” and that “articles” found with the body provided the person’s identity and origins.
Bailes said her department and the Georgia Bureau of Investigation assisted the Flowery Branch Police Department in executing a search warrant Wednesday at Duffie and Dyke’s home on Misty Springs Lane. During the search, adult protective services removed four elderly people — three male and one female — from the residence.
Asked if Duffie and Dykes were operating some kind of elder care facility out of their home, Bailes said the department was not releasing any information “on that.”
“The GBI is still investigating,” she said.
As of Thursday, Duffie had been charged with possession of a Schedule IV drug and financial card fraud. Dykes had been charged with tampering with evidence, false statements and obstruction.
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