Police, scientist probing Bull Valley skulls’ origin
Local police are investigating how a pair of skulls wound up in Bull Valley last week, authorities said Tuesday.
The skulls, found by a 12-year-old boy on Jan. 25 in Bull Valley outside of McHenry, were anatomical lab specimens, said McHenry County Deputy Coroner Kim Bostic. But police don’t know where they came from or how they got to Bull Valley — whether they fell out of a moving vehicle or if someone planted them there as a prank, Police Chief Richard Vance said.
“It’s not illegal to have it, but intent has a lot to do with what a person will be charged with — and you have to prove that intent,” Vance said. “At this point, we’re looking into every possibility. We’re not sure exactly what happened, but we’re working on finding out.”
A forensic scientist at the University of Indianapolis determined the skulls were real but had been prepared for an educational or display setting, Bostic said.
The coroner’s office sent the skulls to Stephen P. Nawrocki, a professor of biology and anthropology at the university. He is working on a detailed report that will shed some light on the age of the skulls, their gender and the country from which they hail, Vance said. Nawrocki will first send his report to the coroner’s office, which will then forward it to police, Vance said.
What’s known now is that the skulls would have been used in a doctor’s office, a school or other educational center, Bostic said.
The skulls were bleached in preparation for the display.
Twelve-year-old Tarren Garcia discovered one of the skulls as he walked down his driveway in the 1500 block of Cherry Valley Road shortly after 7 a.m. last Tuesday.
After the discovery, Bull Valley Police and officials from other departments — including cadaver dogs — searched the area and found another skull. But no other human remains were found.
Vance did not have an estimate on the hours spent on the case, but said the department has been working in the “most efficient and most thorough manner we can.”