Over 500 coffins and 200 sacks of rotting human remains have been discovered in sheds at a cemetery.
The grim body parts were found in four buildings that are not morgues or intended for the preservation of corpses.
Most of the human remains, which included many children, had no identifying information with them.
The discovery was made following an audit carried out at La Plata Cemetery in the city of the same name, near Buenos Aires, Argentina.
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Mayor, Julio Alak called for a series of audits in the city to “guarantee the transparency” of his new administration.
They found 501 abandoned coffins and over 200 bags of decomposing human remains in four buildings in the cemetery.
According to the authorities, they first found 16 wooden coffins in the basement of a temple building.
Before coming across the scene, inspectors noticed a “nauseating odour” and said the coffins had apparently come from vaults and niches.
The coffins were in disrepair with many lying in puddles of stagnant water.
The authorities said this was “not the product of natural wear and tear” but an “act carried out deliberately”.
They added: “In this sense, we suspect that, with respect to the vaults and niches to which the coffins probably came from, there could have been some fraudulent handling of them.”
In the second building, known as the ‘wake room’, investigators found over 200 bags with human remains and bones along with another 15 coffins.
The third space, located on the second floor of a building near the cemetery entrance, the authorities found 340 adult coffins and 22 for children.
There were also body bags with skeletal remains along with human bones scattered all over the floor.
In the fourth building, known as the ‘sand shed’, officials found 107 coffins and more body bags with human remains.
The council will analyse the findings before filing a complaint with the Public Prosecutor’s Office to “clarify the facts and those responsible”.
They said: “All these sites were in a very poor state of organisation and cleanliness with strong odours, stagnant water, and even skulls on the floor”.
It is unknown how long they had been kept in these conditions.
The authorities also vowed to identify as many of the deceased as possible before giving them a “proper burial”.
A spokesperson said: “This is extremely serious, given the complex spiritual, social, and moral elements behind it.
“We believe it not only harms the administration of this public service, but also the community and especially the relatives of the deceased.”
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