Investigation underway after two cars found in and near Barberry Park pond
COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)
Two cars were found in and near a pond in Barberry Park in Columbia Thursday morning.
ABC 17 News arrived at the scene just after 6:45 a.m. and saw three Columbia Police Department officers investigating.
ABC 17 News saw the front of one car in the pond, while the other was near the edge of the pond.
According to Columbia Police Department officer Lori Simpson, police are currently searching for the owners of the vehicles.
No one was found at the scene. Simpson says the two silver Hyundais were left overnight.
A tow truck arrived at the scene just after 7 a.m. to remove the cars from Fishing Pond.
Both cars were towed from the area just before 7:45 a.m. and the scene was cleared.
ABC 17 was able to get in contact with ATR Towing and Recovery, who confirmed they were the company that removed the cars from the bank of the pond.
ATR said when the tow truck drivers arrived, to them it looked like the vehicles had been attempted to be pushed into the pond but got stuck on the bank.
ATR added that crews removed two Hyundais: a 2008 model and a 2011 model.
ABC 17 was also able to speak with neighbors who live in the area.
Both people who we spoke to said that the discovery of the vehicles is very unusual for the area.
One neighbor, William Zabriskie, said that he noticed 2 cars in the park around 1 a.m. when he was taking his dog for a walk.
"All the headlights were on the outside lights and on and, you know, just like you just stepped out of your car, lights on. And then, with the reflection off of the water of the headlights, you could," he said.
Adding he was not able to see if anyone was in our near the cars.
"It was kind of hazy as I, you know, tried to look into the car and see if anybody was sitting in there, whatever was going on. No, there didn't seem to be anybody in the car,” he said.
Another neighbor added that they usally play basketball around 11 p.m. and did not notice anything unsual.
We have reached out to officials for more information on this developing story. Check back later for updates.
