She was photographing litter and debris in her South Wheeling neighborhood to show city officials later in the day, and out of nowhere, a stray cat appeared.
That’s when Victoria Ellis chased after the feline into an overgrown area near a small hillside that leads up to the southbound lane of W.Va. Route 2.
“I was walking around the area and taking photos of the litter and the tires that’s been tossed against the (W.Va. Route 2) highway. It’s a mess over there,” Ellis said. “I was taking photos of all of the debris in our area of South Wheeling because I’ve been in contact with the City about it. That’s when I saw the cat.
“It was in the high weeds, and I’m a cat person, so I was looking and calling for it to make sure it was OK,” she explained. “That’s when I saw that the cat was licking something back there. That’s when I first saw the skull.”
Ellis, though, wasn’t immediately alarmed. But why not?
“I am a horror fanatic because my son was into that stuff before he passed away five years ago, so when I saw the skull, it didn’t really scare me. I thought it looked cool at first, and I almost touched it,” Ellis said. “But then I looked again, and that’s when I knew it wasn’t fake. It was real. Very real.
“My parents’ house isn’t even a half-block away from where I found the remains, so I ran down there and got my Mom to come see so she could confirm that the skull wasn’t fake. When she saw it, she knew it was real, too,” she explained. “That’s when my Dad called it in to 911 and the police came. I met them where I found it and told them how it took place. I know I did the right thing.”
The report was received by Ohio County 911 on Wednesday morning, and officers and EMTs from Wheeling’s police and fire departments immediately responded to the area of 42nd and Wood streets near a few warehouses and storage lots. First responders also recovered additional human remains from the site.
“I didn’t see the other remains because, while I may be a fan of horror movies and things like that, in real life, it’s not so cool,” Ellis admitted. “I mean, in real life, that was a person, and I know I’ve seen a lot of death while my son was fighting back against neuroblastoma, but I just hope they can find the person’s family.
“I met the police by the animal urgent care and got into the cruiser and told them how I found it,” she said. “Then I wrote down my statement, drew up where I found the skull, and that was it.”
According to Sciencing.com, decomposition of the human body can take up to a few weeks to several months, depending on the amount of exposure to outdoor elements, and the remains are now with personnel with the state Medical Examiner’s Offic,e and testing will take place in an effort to identify the individual.
Ellis now hopes her discovery will assist with solving the mystery surrounding the remains.
“In one way, I’m happy about finding it because it might give closure to the person’s family,” she said. “They have to be wondering what happened to whoever that is. They have to be missing them, I would think, and I would hope.
“I know there’s a process to it all, and I hope it goes quickly because I’m sure there’s a lot of people out there wondering if it’s their family member. I have received some messages from people so they could ask me about what I saw,” she added. “So, hopefully now, someone’s questions will get answered.”
