BARRINGTON, R.I. (WPRI) — Human bones unearthed at a construction site in Barrington were found to belong to an indigenous individual, and a forensic pathologist told 12 News there are specific steps that must be taken before making that conclusion. Dr. Priya Banerjee has analyzed her fair share of human remains throughout her career and said it's critical to figure out who the remains belong to and how that person died. "You want to make sure you rule out the worst — that this is not a recent murder, accident, suicide or anything of that nature," Banerjee explained. From there, forensic pathologists take into consideration where the bones were found and who discovered them. "You have to get the back story," she said. "How deep were the bones buried? That can tell you a lot — if someone is buried deep, then it may have been a more formal burial than what we see in more nefarious cases." Banerjee said forensic pathologists closely examine the bones to determine the person's basic features, such as their approximate age, height and weight. "You lay out the skeleton and try to put it back together like a puzzle," she said. Forensic pathologists also X-ray the entire skeleton and each bone individually to look for internal trauma that might not be visible to the naked eye. "You want to make sure there's nothing penetrating into the bones that you can't see, like a bullet, a knife tip or maybe even an arrowhead," Banerjee said. Banerjee said there are certain characteristics that forensic pathologists look for when figuring out a person's gender, race and ethnicity based on a skeleton alone. "You can look at the shape of the jaw and the brow bone, that will tell you if it's male or female," she explained. "There are a lot of subtleties in the skull that can help tell you if the person is Caucasian, African American, Native American and so on. You can get a general classification." Detectives were looking into a 71-year-old man's claim that the bones found in Barrington could belong to his grandmother. The man visited Barrington police just days after the bones were discovered by a contractor at a job site off Elm Lane, according to a police report obtained by 12 News. He told detectives he believed the remains belonged to his grandmother because she went "completely missing" when his mother was 4 years old, the report said. "He stated that his grandfather had a violent temper and worked as a butcher," the report noted. The man further explained that his mother passed away in 2006 at 79 years old, meaning his grandmother likely vanished in 1931. The state medical examiner determined the bones were between 75 and 100 years old, which would put her disappearance within that suspected time frame. But an archeologist with the Rhode Island Historical Preservation Society confirmed last week that the human remains were found at a tribal burial site. The state medical examiner also concluded that the bones are indigenous and has since closed the case. Detectives were able to verify that the man's grandparents and mother did at one point live in town. It's unclear if additional evidence has been uncovered to substantiate the man's claims. Banerjee said the state medical examiner works closely with the Rhode Island Historical Preservation Society. "We usually only get them involved if we think the remains are of historical significance," she said, referring to the Rhode Island Historical Preservation Society. It's now up to the town to determine whether to conduct an archeological dig at the construction site. "It's a delicate decision," Banerjee said. "If it's not clearly delineated as a historical grave site or it's not known, then I think you have to be delicate." "It's a balance," she continued. "You have to think, 'What was happening here? Why were these unearthed?' Then you have to figure out if you should chase it more." Since the bones were discovered at a construction site, Banerjee believes the decision should be made before work resumes. "You don't want to disturb other remains that haven't been unearthed, but at the same time, if you're going to be laying a foundation to a house, that's going to be dug deep, you have to do it very carefully," she said. "You can't just take a big backhoe and then discard the dirt in a dump truck and take it away. You have to be very careful that nothing of historical significance is being discarded." The Rhode Island Historical Preservation Society is now working with federally recognized tribes that have expressed interest in the Barrington remains to determine who the bones will be released to, according to the medical examiner’s office. Close Thanks for signing up! Watch for us in your inbox. Subscribe Now Daily Roundup SIGN UP NOW