• Human skull, bones found on altar in backyard of LA woman's home

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    By Jason Kandel and Jane Yamamoto, NBCLosAngeles.com

    Los Angeles County Coroner’s officials on Sunday were examining a human skull and bones found at a burned makeshift backyard altar at the home of a woman who police said practices Santería.

    The discovery was made Sunday before 1 p.m. when the Pasadena Police Department responded to a report of a possible trespasser in the 800 block of North Oakland Avenue, police said.

    "Having human bones is a little disconcerting," said Pasadena Lt. Ed Calatayud. "We respect everyone's religious right to practice. Our focus is on the bones."

    Calatayud said it is not always illegal to have human bones. He said those who study bones for science, for example, can have them legally.

    The case was uncovered when police found what appeared to be a makeshift altar, adorned with burned artifacts, animal bones, incense and candles, police said.

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    Investigators and the personnel from the coroner's office responded to the home to collect the items for further analysis, police said.

    Santería is a syncretic religion of West African and Caribbean origin influenced by Roman Catholic Christianity.

  • Beagle goes for walk, returns home with human skull

    By Miranda Leitsinger, Staff Writer, NBC News

    A beagle returned home with an unusual find that has led to a criminal investigation in the town of Gallup, New Mexico: a human skull.

    The dog found the remains Saturday evening and carried them home. Its owner, who lives on the west end of Gallup’s airport, then alerted authorities, John Allen, deputy police chief, told msnbc.com.

    Police have determined the skull was from an individual believed to be a man, roughly 35 to 45 years old, who probably died about three years ago, Allen said.

    Police decided to search a field around where the beagle lives since they figured the canine couldn’t have walked too far with the skull due to the dog's size. Their search turned up other human bones that “we believe are related to this skull,” Allen said.

    “It is a criminal investigation at this time and until we determine otherwise, or receive other information, we’re going to continue along this path,” he said. “We’re attempting to identify who this individual may be … we may possibly have a lead and we’re looking into that right now.”

    Gallup Police Det. John Yearley said dogs and coyotes unearth human remains a few times a year. In one case last year, dogs found bones that led police to a homicide case.

    Police put the beagle on a leash to see if it could lead them to more remains, but the dog didn't, Yearley said. More bones were found near a coyote den, said Yearley, adding that he believed the body had been buried.

    Of the beagle, he said, it is "quite the rabbit hunter. How he switched off from rabbits to the skull, I don't know."

    Beagles have the best ground scenting ability among popular dog breeds, a trait that made them popular rabbit hunters in centuries past, according to SPCA International.

    Gallup is a rural area that is home to about 20,000 people and borders the Navajo reservation, Allen said. It is about 140 miles west of Albuquerque.

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