Human skull found in Goodwill donation box in Arizona; police say no apparent link to any crime

GOODYEAR, Ariz. (AP) — It’s probably not the strangest item ever donated to a Goodwill store. But employees of a thrift store in the Phoenix area knew exactly what to do when they saw what looked like a human skull in one of their donation boxes: Call police.

Officers responded to the store in Goodyear on Tuesday night and took possession of the skull, which was covered in spots and had its upper front teeth attached, plus a false eye in the left socket.

Officials with Goodwill of Central and Northern Arizona say they followed company protocol by immediately reporting the donation to police.

The skull was transported to the Maricopa County Medical Examiner’s Office where authorities “confirmed that it is in fact a real human skull,” police spokesperson Lisa Berry said.

"It appears this human skull is historic and has no forensic significance, meaning there appears to be no associated crime,” Berry added of the preliminary findings.

It remains unclear who donated the skull and what would become its final disposition. Berry said police had no additional information to release about the skull Thursday.

Store employees referred all inquiries about the skull to Goodwill’s corporate office Thursday, but nobody immediately returned calls.