Human Skull Found In Old U-Haul In Lake County: Police

LAKE VILLA, IL — A human skull believed to be decades old was discovered inside a military footlocker in an old U-Haul truck at an automotive business near Lake Villa, authorities said.

Lake County sheriff’s deputies were called at about 6:05 p.m. on Sept. 21 to an automotive shop in the 37600 block of Route 59 in unincorporated Lake Villa after someone reported finding what appeared to be a human skull, Lake County Sheriff’s Office Deputy Chief Christopher Covelli said.

The man who made the discovery told deputies he had been cleaning out his deceased father’s business, which his father had owned since the early 2000s. An old U-Haul truck had been sitting on the property since before his father took ownership of the business, according to authorities.

Inside the truck, the man found what appeared to be a military footlocker containing a suspicious item. Deputies opened the footlocker and found what appeared to be a human skull with the word “Okinawa” written across the forehead, along with other military memorabilia, Covelli said.

Deputies collected the skull and contacted the Lake County Coroner’s Office. After reviewing photographs, officials with the coroner’s office determined the skull appeared to be human, authorities said.

The skull was turned over to the coroner’s office for further examination. A preliminary examination indicated the remains appear to be decades old.

Sheriff’s detectives determined the footlocker likely belonged to a man who has since died and would have been 79 years old today. Investigators learned through interviews that the man had been stationed in Okinawa and Korea during the Vietnam War, Covelli said.

It was not immediately clear whose skull was found or how it ended up inside the footlocker.

Sheriff’s detectives are continuing to investigate the discovery in coordination with the Lake County Coroner’s Office.