6:16 p.m.
FRANKLIN CO. - After months of searching an area of Walnut Knob Road for missing Patrick County woman Letisha Faust, police have finally found something.
A cadaver dog named Keyes located a body down this steep ravine just thirty minutes after beginning the search. Blue tape now marks the area where the remains were found.
Lieutenant Steve McGuire says it appears the body has been there for a long time.
"We can says that its human remains. The remains are decomposed to the point that we can not make identification from observation,” said McGuire.
He says they are in the early stages of processing the scene. Other search dogs check the surrounding area for evidence to help figure out who this person was.
I asked, “Is this body’s Mrs. Faust’s" and McGuire responded, “We can not tell. Obviously there is some speculation that it may be Mrs. Faust, but we can not say that for sure at this point because we can not make identification."
The remains were found about a half-a-mile walking distance from where Faust’s car was located in January, but only about 300 yards away when measured straight down into the ravine.
The grade is so steep, it's difficult to stand. Police say they don't know if the person fell down the mountain which may have lead to their death, or if foul play was somehow involved. Lieutenant McGuire says right now it's just too early to tell.
McGuire says for now they are focusing on getting the body out of the ravine. They had to cut a path to it and used an ATV to transport the remains out of the remote area. Police say it could be several days or weeks before they know if the body found is that of Letisha Faust, and if so, what may have happened to her.
The remains are now the medical examiner's office, where they're going to try to use dental records to identify the person. Then they'll do an autopsy to determine a cause of death for the person.
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2:12 p.m.
During a weekend search for a missing Patrick County woman, a cadaver dog led crews to a body.
The body was found off of Walnut Knob road in Franklin County in a steep ravine.
Officials say they don't know if the remains belong to a male or female.
The body will be sent to the medical examiners office tonight to determine the identity.
Letisha Faust of Patrick County disappeared December 9th. This past weekend, seven divers cleared the two acre pond on Walnut Knob road with no sign of Faust.
Jarett Henshaw will have more from the story tonight on WSLS at 6:00 p.m.
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