Photo: Alamy Stock Photo
A decomposing body has been found in the walls of an old convention center in Oakland, Calif., authorities have announced. The space has been out of use for 17 years.
Lt. Ray Kelly of the Alameda County Sheriff’s Office said the remains were “best described as mummified,” according toNBC News.
“The conditions in the walls were such that the body was preserved in good conditions,” Kelly said.
The victim was located inside the walls on the top tier of the auditorium “behind drywall” and “between two concrete pillars,” according to Shavies' statement. The opening between the pillars was approximately 15 inches in size.
The body is believed to have been hidden inside the convention center for at least three to five years, the lieutenant noted in Wednesday’s video statement.
The victim has since been removed from the space, Shavies said. “No obvious or unnatural trauma” was found on the victim’s body.
The Alameda County Sheriff’s Office previously confirmed that the county coroner had visited the scene, according toCBS San Francisco.
Officials are seeking “further clarification” about the victim’s identity and cause of death as they investigate the case. Shavies said Wednesday that the victim’s age and race remains unclear.
Kelly believes “any theory is possible,” according to NBC. “It could be anything from someone who got in behind the wall and became trapped and died, to someone put the person there,” he speculated. “God only knows.”
The Henry J. Kaiser Center was closed in 2005 when Oakland officials determined that operating costs for the building “became too expensive to sustain,“per the City of Oakland’s website. It first opened in 1914.
The building, which has fallen under “increasing disrepair,” is expected to reopen as a performing arts venue and commercial space following a July 2015 agreement with Orton Development, Inc.
“Orton will ensure that the Property will be registered as a National Historic Landmark and rehabilitated in accordance with the Secretary of the Interior’s Standards for Rehabilitation,” the city says on its website.
Anyone with information about the case is asked to contact the Oakland Police Department’s Homicide Section at (510) 238-3821 or the TIP LINE at 238-7950.
source: people.com
