Australian police have closed a murder investigation after a suitcase found by the side of a road was discovered to contain a lifelike doll rather than human remains.
The bizarre discovery was made by two men who were driving near the small village of Oallen, around 230km (143 miles) south-west of Sydney, when they stopped and found the suitcase.
Police Response and Investigation
Police were called to the scene and initially believed they could be dealing with a serious crime. A murder investigation was announced on Monday, sparking intense interest in the discovery.
But hours later, forensic testing established that the apparent victim was not human.
Supt Linda Bradbury, from the Hume Police District, said the item had initially been mistaken for human remains because it looked remarkably realistic.
“The contents in the suitcase were mistaken for a human originally, so they are very realistic in terms of looking like human remains,” she said. “But we've confirmed by other means that they are not.”
Details of the Discovery
Police said the doll was dressed in clothing and had hair and a nose piercing. It also had markings that appeared to resemble bruises and grazes, adding to the initial impression that investigators could have been dealing with the body of a woman.
Forensic teams and investigators attended the scene on Sunday as police worked to establish exactly what had been found.
Supt Bradbury defended the decision to treat the discovery as a potential crime scene, saying officers had followed the correct procedures.
“The idea is to not disturb crime scenes as much as possible, to maintain the integrity of our investigation,” she said. She added that she had “no regrets” about how the investigation was handled.
Impact on the Finders
The discovery had understandably shocked the two men who came across the suitcase during a weekend drive.
Earlier, Supt Bradbury described the find as “quite a shocking discovery” for the pair, who had stopped for a break while travelling in the area.
She said the men had made the right decision by immediately reporting what they believed could have been human remains. “Unfortunately, they were on a weekend drive as a lot of people do over the weekend and stopped for a break,” she said.
She added that the men had been affected by what they saw and that police would contact them to let them know that the remains were not human.
Conclusion
The unusual case highlights just how convincing some lifelike dolls can appear, particularly when dressed and positioned inside a suitcase and viewed in circumstances where investigators initially have limited information.
Police have now closed their investigation and confirmed that no murder had taken place.
