Treasure hunter finds body inside abandoned MS home
HOLLY SPRINGS, Miss. — A 23-year-old adventurer is shaken after he stumbled upon a body in an abandoned house in Holly Springs, Mississippi, Saturday night.
Riley Bryant typically uncovers amazing finds while treasure hunting. In October 2022, he discovered Civil War-era bullets, an 1880s glass bottle from the J.J. Henrich Bottling Company, and an old oar lock for a row boat, all along the Mississippi River bank.
But Saturday, he says he discovered a body while metal detecting near a vacant home in Holly Springs, Mississippi, with his dad and a few friends.
“We actually noticed through the window of the vacant building that there was something that didn’t look right on the floor in one of the back rooms,” said Riley. “We thought ‘This is strange’ and determined it was definitely something we needed to report to the authorities.”
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According to the Marshall County Coroner, the body has been sent off to Pearl, Miss. for an autopsy. They have not yet determined the gender of the person found, and the cause of death is still being investigated.
“I waited until they had removed the body and cleared the scene. I was there the whole time. it took him about two hours or so,” Riley said. “I’ve never seen anything like that before. The realization kind of sunk in that that was somebody dead.”
Riley thinks the person died due to unfortunate circumstances, possibly trying to stay warm.
“He had taken stuff in the house, ripped the curtains down, towels, anything he could find had to kind of pile on himself to try to keep warm,” he said. “When you really look at it just gets sadder and sadder. This is not someone that was wandering around drunk or something. It was somebody that obviously wanted to live.”
Riley’s father Chuck, who was also present when the body was found, views this as a teachable moment for both him and Riley.
“We had some discussions on the way home and continued to talk about it, trying to deconstruct the whole thing and learn from it,” Chuck said. “Try to be a better person. Be aware of people that might be in need around you.”
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