Native American remains were discovered earlier this week in a construction area of UC Berkeley, university spokesperson Janet Gilmore confirmed to SFGATE. 

The bones were discovered Wednesday, and the news was first reported by the Berkeley Scanner. Gilmore said authorities believe the remains are not connected to a crime. The Alameda County Sheriff’s Office was the agency that determined the remains were “likely Native American,” and police are not involved in the case, Sgt. Kevin Vincent with the UC Berkeley Police Department told SFGATE. 

According to the Berkeley Scanner, the remains were found in the area set to be the new beach volleyball complex at the university. (The complex, which will be located at UC Berkeley Campus Park, west of Edwards Stadium, is expected to be completed by this summer, according to UC Berkeley’s website.)

This week wasn’t the first time human remains were found at the university. In 2023, a construction company notified police about skeletonized remains found in an abandoned building on UC Berkeley’s Clark Kerr Campus. The remains, which actually had been discovered two years prior, were determined to be the bones of a man who was a victim of a homicide.