California woman drives mummified body around for 10 months

LONDON - In a case that may send shivers down your spine, a California woman drove a mummified body around for 10 months.

The woman driver who befriended a homeless woman and let her sleep in her car told police that she didn’t know where to turn when the woman unexpectedly died.

Officers with the Costa Mesa police found the unidentified body after getting a call about a car partially blocking a driveway, Sgt. Ed Everett said.

When officers arrived, they noticed a stench and saw a leg poking out from a blanket and some clothes, he said.he partially mummified remains consisted of mostly skin and bones.

An autopsy showed no signs of foul play but police are still investigating the role of the car’s driver.

The woman driving the car told police she met a homeless woman, who was aged in her fifties or sixties, in a park and told her she could sleep in her car, Sgt Everett said. But when the woman died in the vehicle 10 months ago, she was afraid to go to the police, he said.

The woman who drives the car, a 57-year-old who herself had fallen on hard times and was living with friends, told officers she had last seen the woman alive in December. It wasn’t clear when she discovered the body in the car, he said.

“She felt she would be accused of something and with everything going on in her life, she didn’t want to deal with that,” the Telegraph quoted Sgt Everett as saying.

Police also found a box of baking soda in the car, which the driver had used to try to cover up the smell, he said.(ANI)