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Remains of Two 1930s-Era Fetuses Found in Westlake Basement

Lindsay William-Ross

Published Aug 17, 2010 11:00 PM

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An apartment manager doing some cleaning in the basement of a Westlake building found something unusual wrapped in newspapers inside two doctor's bags stashed in a steamer trunk. Inside the papers--a 1933 and a 1935 issue of the Los Angeles Times--were "infant skeletons" thought to be those of fetuses, according to the Daily News.

"If the preliminary investigation is of any indication, the remains have been there for a very long time," notes abc7. "There was documentation in the trunks that indicates that the remains could date back decades," including a 1932 ticket stub from the Olympic Games.

Some speculate that if the skeletons are indeed Depression-era that financial troubles may have kept the parents from being able to afford burial, according to a live report on KTLA. The remains have been taken to the coroner's office to determine the cause and approximate date of death.