Calgary police are partnering with university researchers on a new study using pig carcasses in the Bow River to better understand how human remains move through waterways during missing persons and homicide investigations.The Calgary Police Service announced it is working alongside researchers from the University of Saskatchewan and the University of Windsor to study how submerged remains travel, surface and settle within the Bow River system.As part of the project, pig cadavers fitted with GPS tracking devices will be placed in the river and remotely monitored as they move downstream.Researchers say the devices will record depth, temperature and travel distance before trained personnel recover the carcasses once they become buoyant.Police and researchers said pig cadavers are widely accepted in scientific studies as substitutes for human remains because of their physical similarities.The study is aimed at helping investigators predict where and when bodies are most likely to be found in the Bow River.“This research will give us data we simply don’t have right now,” said Dr. Iain Phillips, an adjunct professor at the University of Saskatchewan.“By understanding how remains behave in the Bow River — how far they travel, where they move and when they surface — we can develop evidence-based models that improve recovery efforts.”.Phillips said the ultimate goal is to help investigators find answers more quickly and provide closure for families.The research builds on earlier work conducted in Saskatchewan, where similar findings reportedly helped investigators recover human remains in a homicide case.Calgary police said the study reflects a broader push toward evidence-based investigative methods in missing persons and homicide cases involving waterways.“Sadly, it is a tragic reality that past missing persons have entered our city’s waterways,” the Calgary Police Service stated.Police warned Calgarians may notice unusual activity along the Bow River in coming weeks and asked the public not to interfere with any research equipment or recovery operations.
