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Most people keep clocks, candles, photos, or perhaps decorative rocks on their mantelpiece. However, in October 2020 one resident from Morgan County, Tennessee, made the unusual choice of adorning his living room with a skull wearing sunglasses. Little did they know that the skull actually belonged to 79-year-old Junior Will McCann. A man who went missing in 2012. [1]
A “Decorative Skull” is Actually Part of a Murder Investigation
The mystery of the missing man seemed like it was going to stay a mystery forever. That is until police detectives got the tip that McCann’s human remains were on display in an unnamed residential home.
Officers seized the skull and sent it for testing to the Regional Forensic Center and the University of Tennessee Anthropology Department. There they discovered it had belonged to the unfortunate Junior Will McCann.
According to District Attorney General Russell Johnson, McCann went missing eight years ago. One of his family members, who had since passed, away may have been the murderer.
“An extensive search was made — at the time of the skull being taken ‘into custody’ by the MCSO, TDOC, and others — of the area where the skull had been found (according to the man who supposedly found it),” wrote Johnson in a Facebook post. “Speculation and rumor has been that Junior Willie McCann was possibly killed by a family member who is now deceased as well.” [2]
Human Skull Discovered Sitting on Fireplace Mantle for Over a Year and Sporting Sunglasses Positively Identified as Man…
Posted by Russell Johnson on Monday, October 26, 2020
So far, the homeowner who used the skull as decoration hasn’t been associated with the murder. Still, many questioned that strange decision to use it as a goofy decoration. After all, who would casually find a skull and think, “this would look great on the mantel with some sunglasses”? Most people would just call the cops.
One commenter wrote, “This is one of those things that leave me speechless. If it was found, why in the world was it not turned over to authorities?”
Read: College Dropout Invented a Surgery To Cure Himself After Being Bedridden For 11 Years
Old Cases Reopened with Forensic Science
Although McCann’s murderer hasn’t been convicted, its case is one of many that have been furthered with the help of forensic science. Even cases from decades ago.