This past Friday, the Orange County Police Department was made aware of skeletal remains found by a local road crew along the side of Hackney Prairie Road in the town of Ocoee, Florida. According to My News 13 in Florida, deputies on the scene confirmed that they were human bones, but a gender could not be instantly identified. When authorities identified the situation, the family of Tracy Ocasio was immediately notified.
Tracy Ocasio disappeared in 2009, when she was last seen at the MetroBar in Orlando, FL. Ocasio had gone to the bar to watch the Orlando Magic basketball team in the NBA playoffs. Also at the bar where Ocasio attended was James Hataway, a person of interest, who is now behind bars for life due to the murder of a different person (Source: ClickOrlando).
During the course of the Hackney Prairie Road investigation, the Orange County Sheriff’s Office stated that the Orange County Medical Examiner’s thorough investigation of the remains concluded that were not those of the missing Tracy Ocasio. With this in mind, investigators are still unsure if there is any connection to the remains and the case of Tracy Ocasio.
Captain Angelo Nieves of the Orange County Sheriff’s Office stated the following in relation to the connection that these two cases may have.
“We can’t do that at this point. That would be irresponsible to make that connection, but obviously there is that thought process going out out there. That’s why our team, our sergeant, our supervisors here from our homicide will be working closely with them to make any information available that they need should that come to pass.”
At this time, the Orange County Medical Examiner’s office is currently working on establishing an identity for the remains found at Hackney Prairie Road.
[Image source: My News 13]