Mystery solved: Man claims human ashes, flag found near road

Police in a south Alabama town say a mystery solved itself when a man, alerted by news reports, stopped by the station to claim a small pine box containing his father's ashes, found beside a country road with a neatly folded, framed American flag.

"Without being specific, this person had removed all his personal property from the marital home when he left except for a few items, this box with ashes and the presentation flag being left behind temporarily," Bedsole said in an email to The Associated Press.