Why Were Human Remains Found Near Taylor Swift’s Rhode Island Oceanside House?

On May 14, 2025, a human leg bone washed up one-third of a mile from High Watch, Taylor Swift’s sprawling seaside mansion in Westerly, R.I. Mystery initially surrounded the discovery of the remains: Who did the bone belong to, and how did it end up in the water near Swift’s famous home? 

In a June 13 statement, the South Kingstown Police Department revealed that the remains belonged to Eric Wein, 31, of Massachusetts. 

"After working closely with the Mansfield Police Department and the Rhode Island Office of the State Medical Examiners, the South Kingstown Police Department has formally concluded its investigation," the statement read. 

The department noted that Wein had been reported missing on April 18, 2025, after his car was found abandoned near the public waterfront access point in South Kingstown eight days earlier. The police department said that foul play was not suspected in Wein’s death and extended its “deepest condolences to Mr. Wein's family and loved ones during this difficult time.”

Wein lived in Massachusetts but frequently visited his brother and other friends in nearby Rhode Island. A friend told Us Weekly that Wein had taken a week off from work due to “unforeseen circumstances” right before his disappearance, renting a room at Phil and Anne’s Sunset Motel in Charlestown, R.I. 

Though Wein’s loved ones acknowledged he might have died by suicide, they didn’t wholeheartedly believe that theory fit with what they knew about him. His cause of death remains unconfirmed.

“He loved the water. He was of Norwegian descent. We called him ‘Prince Eric the Red,’” friend Nicole Leboeuf told Us. “He recently got a pirate ship tattooed on his arm. He was so proud of it. He loved it. He loved the ocean, but I can’t see him succumbing to it intentionally.”

Swift’s palatial property, near where Wein’s remains washed up, is in an affluent Westerly enclave called Watch Hill (its official name is “Bear Hill” on maps from the United States Geological Survey). The 12,657-square-foot, three-story white home, dubbed Holiday House, sits on a 5.23-acre cliff overlooking the Atlantic Ocean and boasts at least seven bedrooms and nine bathrooms. The house was built in 1930.

The home—and one of its previous owners, Standard Oil heiress Rebekah Harkness—inspired Swift’s 2020 song “The Last Great American Dynasty,” from her acclaimed album Folklore. 

Though the house was originally built by Pearl Pinkerton McClelland Snowden, Harkness later bought the property, which became notorious for raucous parties and eccentric antics during the 1950s and 1960s. Harkness owned Holiday House for more than three decades until her death in 1982.

Swift purchased the mansion in 2013 for $17.75 million. As of August 2025, the property was valued at more than $29 million. The pop star has been photographed hosting scores of celebrity friends there and throwing blowout Fourth of July parties.

In January 2025, Swift began $1.7 million in renovations to the home, as revealed by the Providence Journal. The media outlet obtained Swift’s plans after her contractor, David Shafovaloff, presented them as part of his building-permit application. 

The renovations reportedly included the construction of a new 24-foot-by-24-foot bathroom, which would be adjacent to a closet and dressing room. (The Journal noted that the bathroom was planned to be larger than Swift’s newly constructed bedroom.) The new bathroom also reportedly featured a freestanding bathtub in front of a fireplace, plus a 6-foot-by-6-foot shower.

Kitchen renovations in the plans included the addition of a kitchen island, the removal of a dishwasher and sink and the installation of a larger range.

Rhode Island lawmakers are considering a proposed tax on luxury homes nicknamed the “Taylor Swift tax.” The state’s Non-Owner Occupied Property Tax Act would apply to secondary residences valued at more than $1 million. The proposal aims to raise funds for affordable housing while addressing concerns about "absentee ownership." 

Property owners would be allowed to sidestep the tax by either making the homes in question their primary residences for at least 183 days per year or by leasing them for a substantial portion of the year.

If the proposed tax goes into effect, Swift could face an extra yearly fee of more than $135,000 for High Watch.