Coroner to examine human skull, other remains found in Santa Ana

This article was originally on a blog post platform and may be missing photos, graphics or links. See About archive blog posts.

Orange County coroner’s officials were in a Santa Ana backyard Monday after the owners of the home found a human skull and other remains during a renovation, authorities said.

The bones were discovered Sunday afternoon in the 2500 block of North Hesperian Street, said Cpl. Anthony Bertanga, spokesman for the Santa Ana Police Department.

The backyard was being excavated when the remains were found. The location is being treated as a crime scene, Bertanga said.

“They were doing some landscaping and came across the bones,” he said.

Officials said they did not know how deep the bones were or whether they belonged to a man or woman.

The house was the site of a 2006 fire that left the previous owner with second-degree burns and destroyed the house, the Orange County Register reported at the time.

A family from the neighborhood purchased the property and rebuilt the home recently, Bertanga said.

The previous owner, who apparently lived alone, was being questioned late Sunday night, Bertanga said. Detectives were looking into whether anyone in the area was reported missing, Bertanga said.

An anthropologist on scene Monday was to decide whether it would be possible to determine a cause of death from the bones, said Deputy Mitch Sigal of the Orange County Coroner’s office.

ALSO:

Actor Taye Diggs chases, captures alleged burglar, LAPD says

Chris Brown, Frank Ocean reportedly brawl over a parking spot

State lawmaker backs early earthquake warning system for California

-- Adolfo Flores