No body found during Cocoa Beach excavation

COCOA BEACH, Fla. (FOX 35 ORLANDO) - A dig by the Cocoa Beach Police Department turned up empty handed.

The Cocoa Beach Police Department said that they, with the help of the Brevard County Sheriff's Office, investigated a tip of a possible buried body in the yard of a residence on Woodland Avenue. Law enforcement reportedly excavated the backyard of the home, but no human remains were found.

Neighbor Claire Ripka said that "I was a little nervous but now that they didn't find anything I'm ok with it."

Sandra Morgan agreed. "Oh my gosh, scary. My son was thinking about buying the house next door. Cocoa Beach is a small town," she said.

Police said that this was no hoax. "We just received a tip but it's from several years ago from what I understand, but it's just something we're following up on."

They say that this is not a cold case or a missing person's case. It's just something they got a tip on. So, there is some information that cannot be released.

Neighbors would like a better explanation. Ripka says, "I think it's a lot of wasted money, waste of time. Costs money to do all that."

Officers say they got permission from the owners to dig up the property beforehand. Fofx 35 is waiting to hear back if the city will be paying the property owners to fix the yard back up.

Police said that they will continue to follow up on any leads related to this tip. The investigation remains active. Anyone with any information regarding this tip is asked to contact the Cocoa Beach Police Department at 321-868-3251 or Crimeline at 1-800-423-TIPS.