FBI, Oakland officials dig to solve 12-year-old murder mystery

OAKLAND, Calif. (KGO) -- Police and the FBI are now digging for clues in Oakland to solve a murder from 12 years ago.

Investigators brought in an excavator and focused on an area near the BART tracks in West Oakland.

FBI officials, Oakland police and city crews spent Thursday digging with front loaders and dump trucks, searching for evidence that will help them solve the homicide.

Police put up plastic blue tarps to screen their efforts from onlookers and they would not confirm that the crews were looking for human remains. "We do not want to jeopardize the investigation by sharing details of that specific case that may compromise the next lead or the next location that we might need to go to," Oakland Police Department Ofc. Johnna Watson said.

Oakland police is the lead agency, but the FBI is assisting with its evidence response team and their specialized equipment.

"We're going to follow the evidence, whatever evidence we find here, we'll follow it, we're not quite sure what we're looking for yet. We have an idea, but we're going to follow where that evidence takes us," FBI spokesperson Danner Prentice said.

The property being search involves several different jurisdictions, including the port, BART and the Union Pacific Railroad.