The remains of three young children were likely rotting in Tennessee woods for several years before an unassuming dog walker stumbled upon them last month, according to authorities. 

Memphis police made the grim discovery after a woman called cops to report finding a human skull while walking her pooch in a heavily-wooded part of the Hickory Hills neighborhood on March 8. 

During a subsequent search of the area – just blocks away from an elementary school and church – police recovered a second human skull in the woods, as well as 14 bones in a nearby drainage system, Memphis Police Chief Cerelyn Davis said during a news conference Wednesday. 

The remains are now believed to be from three victims aged 3 to 7 years old – as initial findings from the medical examiner’s office indicate their remains had been at the scene for “a few years,” Davis said. 

Authorities are now asking for the public’s help to identify the victims and trace their origins, as no missing person reports in Memphis led to a match, the chief explained. 

“We knew that this individual was not, or these individuals were not, persons that were reported out of our area,” she said. 

“Somebody knows where these children have come from. Someone knows the missing children that we have discovered in this area. It’s heartbreaking. It’s disturbing.

“We’re going to follow every inch of this investigation, no stone unturned to just look at the possibilities,” Davis vowed. 

The chief reassured the public that there was no indication of an active threat, and said a team of aapproximately 170 personnel – including FBI agents – were going to continue “a thorough and methodical search” of the area for additional evidence.

Local medical examiner Scott Collier told NBC News that his office would work “expeditiously” to identify the remains.

“The West Tennessee Regional Forensic Center has been actively working with multiple agencies using all available resources to identify the skeletal remains found in the Hickory Hill area of Memphis,” Collier told the outlet. 

A pastor from New Direction Christian Church, just blocks away from the crime scene, said the horrifying discovery demonstrates the importance of protecting young people. 

“I think it’s more confirmation that we need to come together and collaborate. As the old proverb says, ‘It takes a whole village to raise a child.’ So when we begin to adopt our blocks, schools, mentors, young people, I believe we tighten up our security fences around our kids to ensure that we have safe communities for all,” Senior Pastor Stacy Spencer told local news outlet WREG. 

“Not another child should die on our watch,” he said. 

The Memphis Police Department sent a news release about the case in response to inquiries about the investigation.

Anyone with information related to the case is urged to contact CrimeStoppers at 901-528-CASH or the Memphis Police Department Homicide Bureau at 901-636-3300.