You've heard of skeletons in the closet? One family in West Virginia now knows a lot more about them. But they still aren't sure exactly how it got there.
This incredible story began on April 3rd when a
Charles Town woman named Beatrice Magaha suffered a stroke outside her home and was rushed to hospital. Unfortunately, she didn't survive and was pronounced dead in the ER.
The next day, her daughter and her husband went back to her home to begin the difficult task of cleaning out her mother's possessions. But when they entered the house they noticed a strange smell coming from the closet. It was so strong, they went to investigate.
They went into her bedroom, opened the door and got the shock of their lives - a decomposing body was inside. It was the remains of an elderly woman, wrapped in layers of plastic, blankets and a sleeping bag. And it appears it had been there for some time. An autopsy has since been performed and no foul play has been detected, but officials are still calling the death suspicious.
The stunned relatives have since told police their mother would never allow them inside her house when they came to visit, and up until now, they never understood why.
So who is this mysterious victim? Authorities can't say for sure, but believe they have an idea. Magaha had lived with another woman but family members say she disappeared about a year or two ago and no one ever knew what happened to her. DNA tests are now being performed to determine if there's a connection, but it's not expected the results will be out for another few weeks.
File photo