The usually quiet town of Sant Cugat del Vallès has been shaken by a grim discovery. Around 10.30 am on Friday in the town on the outskirts of Barcelona, a box containing a human skull was found abandoned on a bench in the Plaça de l’Om.
According to local reports, the box had been sitting there since 5.00 am, when it was noticed by passers-by. Upon peering inside, two women were horrified to discover a human skull and immediately alerted emergency services. Officers from the Mossos d’Esquadra, the Catalan police force, secured the scene and transported the remains to the Institut de Medicina Legal i Ciències Forenses de Catalunya (Imelec) for further examination.
ATENCIÓ 🔴 Troben un crani en un banc de la plaça de l’Om de Sant Cugat #SantCugat @mossos @ajsantcugat @josepmvalles @EstherMadrona @bernatpicornell @policiastc @MuseuSantCugat https://t.co/21uu6BsST1
— Cugat Mèdia (@cugatmedia) December 13, 2024
A cryptic note
Adding to the macabre nature of the find, a handwritten note was discovered inside the box. The note claimed that the skull dates back to the Spanish Civil War, a conflict that ravaged Spain between 1936 and 1939. Esther Madrona, the local councillor for democratic memory, visited the site. Thereafter, she announced plans to involve the Memorial Democràtic, a Catalan institution dedicated to preserving the memory of those affected by the Civil War and the Franco dictatorship.
Forensic challenges
Forensic experts face a daunting task in verifying the note’s claims. If the remains do indeed originate from the Civil War, identifying the individual and determining the circumstances of their death will be particularly challenging due to the passage of nearly 90 years. Despite these obstacles, the skull’s deliberate placement suggests that whoever left it intended for it to be discovered and investigated. Police have yet to identify the person who deposited the box on the bench.
Also read: Brutal theft of gold teeth from mass grave near Granada