Mummified corpse in a barrel found in Crete

The authorities are trying to find the end of the thread to grab onto in the investigation of a gruesome crime. In the city of Rethymno, on the banks of the Platanion River, a mummified corpse of a man was found in a barrel.

Forensic scientist Antonis Papadomanolakis and his colleagues from the PAHNI forensic medicine laboratory, where the remains were transported, came to the conclusion that they belonged to a man between the ages of 40 and 60, but not older than 65, and believe that about a year has passed since his death (but no more than 2 years).

According to the publication “Rethymniotika Nea” Mr. Papadomanolakis, only on the basis of the denture, which has been preserved unchanged, it will be possible to establish the identity of the victim, of course, if the visit to the dentist has been archived. In the forensic laboratory, DNA genetic material was also obtained, so that in the event of a relative of the missing person it would be possible to identify the person.

As Mr. Papadomanolakis pointed out, taking fingerprints, which would also be an important result for identifying the victim, if they were available in the database, was not possible due to the deformation of the limbs.

The Forensic Service is working closely with the local police authorities to facilitate the investigation of this case. Establishing the time of death of an unknown man, as found out by experts of the forensic medical team, expands the investigations of the police authorities, which raised files of the missing not only in the last period, but in the previous two years. In addition, the search is not limited exclusively to the region of Rethymno, but is extended to the whole of Crete. The possibility is not excluded that this is a human body, the disappearance of which was not reported.

The forensic laboratory continues research to draw further conclusions related to the death of the unknown. For example, to establish the cause of death. This is obviously a crime, as the body was placed in a barrel and then hidden in a thicket of reeds. The question is how exactly he was killed.

A group of forensic scientists under the leadership of Mr. Papadomanolakis will be able to, in the coming days, if not give an exact answer, but certainly exclude some possibilities.

When asked by “Rethymno Youth” forensic scientist Antonis Papadomanolakis about whether it is realistic to detect some characteristics of the victim after such a long time (since the time of death is estimated from one to two years), he replied that the plastic barrel in which he was kept was hermetically sealed … In such a “tomb” the body was simply mummified.

According to forensic experts of the police, this case is characterized as “extraordinary”. “This is one of the weird incidents that don’t happen often,” commented Mr. Papadomanolakis.

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