SAN ANTONIO – An employee at a San Antonio plumbing business found what appeared to be a human skull outside the building, prompting a police investigation.
Walter Stephens, an employee at Harrell Commercial Plumbing on North San Jacinto Street, said he was cutting the grass when he spotted something unusual near the building’s entrance.
“I saw what looked like a dried cantaloupe or something,” Stephens said. “I picked it up, and the bottom part of the jaw stayed on the ground. When I turned it over and saw the teeth, I was like, ‘Oh my God.’”
Stephens said he immediately alerted his employer, Brad Harrell, vice president of the company, who contacted San Antonio police.
“You don’t think you’re going to see a human skull, ever really,” Harrell said. “There was no skin or anything on it. It had been decomposed for a while.”
San Antonio police officers and personnel from the Bexar County Medical Examiner’s Office responded to the scene and were later seen removing what appeared to be human remains.
According to Harrell, detectives told him additional remains were found along a creek behind the business.
Harrell and Stephens, who said they both frequently walk the property, believe the skull had not been there long. Harrell speculated that it may have been moved there by a person or animal.
“Either someone picked it up and dropped it off there, or some type of animal moved it,” Harrell said. “It wasn’t knee-high grass where you’re cutting the grass and are like, ‘Whoa, hey there it is.’”
The apparent skull was reportedly found near water bowls left out for neighborhood dogs.
While the discovery was unsettling, Harrell reflected on the experience as a sobering reminder.
“Life is short,” he said. “Live every day to the fullest.”
Authorities have not released further information about the identity of the remains.
San Antonio police are continuing their investigation, and the examiner’s office is working to determine how long the remains may have been at the location and who they belong to.
Read also:
Copyright 2025 by KSAT – All rights reserved.