JOHNSTOWN — After days of searching, the Cambria County Coroner’s Office plans to use ground-penetrating radar Friday in an effort to find the missing remains of the Gallitizin babies, Coroner Jeffery Lees said at a press conference Wednesday morning.

The decision follows last week’s unsuccessful search at the Laurel United Cemetery in Cambria Township to find the buried box of five baby remains involved in the 1980s Stella Williamson homicide case.

Originally, officials wanted to reunite the two baby skulls belonging to the Williamson babies, which were kept at the Mutter Medical Museum in Philadelphia since 1999.

The mission, however, has created more questions than answers, specifically asking where the pine box containing the remains lies in the cemetery.

Lees said “he could not sleep at night” if he did not bring in the piece of equipment that could reunite the remains of the Williamson babies.

“A lot of people are telling me that this was put in my hands for a reason, and I have to do what is in my heart,” he said.

Ground-breaking technology

Camp Hill-based Utility Services Group Inc. will provide the ground-penetrating radar equipment — and a certified operator — to conduct the search that will commence at the cemetery Friday morning.

Last week, Lees was made aware of a “state-of-the-art” piece of equipment that can detect objects buried underground or within structures. It uses a non-destructive technique to send electromagnetic waves into the ground, take the reflections and produce a subsurface image.

“It has a 100% success rate,” he noted.

Utility Services Group project manager Nathan Ruhl has faith the equipment will help find the box.

In the past, the company has located about 80 unmarked plots that belonged to veterans, Ruhl said, so they feel confident that they can assist in the search for the babies’ remains.

Backhoe operator Ed Myers will also be present on Friday, along with former forensic anthropologist Dr. Dennis Dirkmaat, his team and the Cambria County Emergency Management Agency.

Lees stated that he is using every resource available.

“We are very hopeful that we will succeed in our mission in reuniting these babies,” he said.

Questions answered

While officials searched for the box last week, they came across a door knob and pieces of wood buried around four to five feet underground.

“We were all stumped,” Lees said. “Why the heck is a door knob buried this far down?”

This discovery made officials question what lies beneath the surface, conducting research and listening to members of older generations about the history of grave sites.

According to Lees, wooden doors were placed “up and down” in the ground to separate grave sites.

“It has been very educational on how things were done back then,” Lees said.

In the midst of research, rumors have circulated around the Williamson baby case, including its relation to the “lunchbox baby” case.

Lees put the rumors to rest during the press conference.

“In no way is (the lunchbox baby) related to the Williamson babies, at all,” he said.

Lees said he brought these subjects to light to maintain honesty and integrity — “to be as transparent as possible.”

Search continues

Since the Cambria County Coroner’s Office knew about the missing baby skulls, Lees said it has been the office staff’s goal to reunite the Williamson babies.

To do that, Lees said his office staff has been “aggressively reviewing old records, markings, combing through a lot of past history.”

He said this case has been “mentally exhausting” for his staff, but it is something that “needs to be done.”

With the knowledge the staff now has, Lees said they are “confident” they are in the general location of the box.

“We have witnesses that were there,” he said. “Through our investigation from within the office, we are all confident that they were buried.”

Utility Service Group plans to work throughout the day Friday, but if need be, they are open to extending their services another day.

“If they need us longer, we are more than capable to help them,” Ruhl said.

If ground-penetrating radar proves to be unsuccessful, however, the Williamson case will remain open.

“Down the road, if there is advanced technology that is created, you can bet we will utilize all resources to do what’s right,” Lees said.

Still, everyone involved is hoping for a successful outcome Friday.

“I believe I need to follow through with this case and give it 100 percent,” Lees said.

Mirror Staff Writer Colette Costlow is at 814-946-7414.