Mummy Found in Staten Island Basement!

For over a year, residents in a two-story apartment building on Staten Island have complained about a foul odor coming "up through the radiator, in the drains," and now they've finally learned the source: A mummified corpse was decomposing in the boarded-up basement! After receiving a tip about the mummy, last night police used a sledgehammer to break into the basement, then donned white protective body suits before venturing inside. The building's landlord believes someone must have illegally entered the apartment to place the body there after it was boarded up; his friend tells Staten Island Advance: "His fiancee was just down there with the plumber doing some work on pipes and they didn't notice a thing." (They must have been pretty busy "working on those pipes," eh?) Authorities confirmed that the corpse may have been there for over a year, but refused to speculate on the nature of the injuries or the cause of death.

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By John Del Signore in News on April 28, 2009 12:43 PM

Comments [rss]

jaycjay

"someone broke in and placed the body there. Apparently without leaving any trace or necessitating any repairs on the landlord's part.

Okay, could happen."

Of course it could! I saw it on The Wire... all you need is a big nail gun.

Past Taliban

Something about the landlord's story stinks.

Politburo

The landlord's story makes little sense.

First off, he says he stopped renting the apartment a few years ago, "after police arrested some individuals for drugs" (according to the friend). Landlords just love to have unrented units lying around, right?

Okay, maybe it needed repairs, or was never licensed.. who knows. So he boards up the apartment. But his theory is that sometime in the past year, someone broke in and placed the body there. Apparently without leaving any trace or necessitating any repairs on the landlord's part.

Okay, could happen. So the apartment is boarded up... but the fiancee was just down there the other day with the plumber? And neither of these individuals noticed the smell which apparently can be detected in units above the basement? (How did they get in the basement, anyway?)

Leads me to think the landlord knows more than he is saying.