Skeletal remains found in US are those of Guyana-born man

Last Updated on Tuesday, 14 April 2015, 18:47 by GxMedia

Skeletal remains found in bushes in downtown Birmingham, Alabama, United States earlier this year have now been identified as those of a Guyana-born man.

The Jefferson County Coroner’s Office Tuesday said the remains are those of 63-year-old Michael Augustus Parkinson, a homeless man who only moved to Birmingham months before he likely died.

The cause of Parkinson’s death can’t be determined, but Chief Deputy Coroner Bill Yates said there is no indication of foul play.

Birmingham police were called to the scene behind a warehouse in the 600 block of 6th Street North about 1:30 p.m. on Jan. 4. The remains were under brush in an area near I-65. Russell Williams, owner of Russell’s Speed Shop, said he was walking his four dogs near his business when he made the discovery.

He said he spotted what he thought looked like a body and took a closer look. “I was like that’s a skull,” Williams told AL.com in January.

Yates said Parkinson was carrying a form of identification issued to area transients. Investigators reached out to Birmingham homeless shelters, and then found family members in Huntsville, Maryland, Michigan and Florida. They were able to obtain medical records to confirm the man’s identity.

Parkinson, born in Guyana, lived in Huntsville for a time, but most recently lived in Huntsville before coming to Birmingham. He was last known to be alive in late March or early April of 2014.