Psychic tipped off 'mass grave of 30 children'

A psychic has been revealed as the person who tipped off authorities to an alleged mass grave of children in Texas.

There were reports of up to 30 bodies, possibly all children, being buried at a house in a rural county east of Houston.

Liberty County Sheriff's Captain Rex Evans said there is no indication of bodies being anywhere on the rural property about 113 kilometres northeast of Houston.

Officials say the sheriff's office had received two calls from a person who said dismembered bodies would be found.

Evans said authorities took the tip seriously in part because the caller had details about the interior of the house that only someone who had seen it could have known.

He said authorities have a name and number for the caller and were working to track the person down.

A state law enforcement source told the Houston Chronicle that deputies had been directed to the site by a psychic.

"All we know is the sheriff department received a call about a mass grave, or something like that, with several bodies," the source said.

"They went and checked it, and there was nothing there."

A preliminary search earlier in the day found evidence of what they believed was blood but no sign of anything else.

Later on cadaver dogs went inside the property but no bodies were found leading them to suggest the call may have been a hoax.

"There’s nothing been confirmed, and we don’t have any confirmation that bodies have been buried," Liberty County Judge Craig McNair said.

"We’re working with our local partners, and anytime there’s a report of this nature we have an obligation to work with our local partners to determine if it’s factual or not."

The owner of the house, Joe Bankson was away at the time but said the allegations were serious.

"It’s very serious. Finding out that the police are in my yard for dead bodies? That’s kinda panicking me. I ain’t killed nobody. We’ve had the cops out at our house, but never for nothing like that. Somebody called the police on my dogs one time."

"I haven't killed anybody," he said. "And I have a lot of friends, but I haven't helped anybody bury any bodies."

Local paper Cleveland Advocate said the tipster told authorities dozens of dismembered bodies were buried at the scene.

A Texas county sheriff's office said there was no evidence yet that bodies had been found at a rural home, after initially saying up to 30 corpses were discovered, a KPRC-TV report said.