Human remains found at Vatican owned property in Rome not of girls who disappeared in 80s

Human remains found at property in Rome owned by the Vatican belonged to an ancient Roman man and not to either of two teenage girls missing since the early 1980s, authorities have said.

The discovery of the remains in October raised hopes of a breakthrough in the cases of Mirella Gregori and Emanuela Orlandi, both of whom were 15 when they disappeared within weeks of each other in 1983.

Initial reports suggested tests on the remains showed they were those of a woman. There was speculation that they could be the remains of two people, after an almost complete skeleton was found in one area and bone fragments in another.

But investigators closed the case on Friday, saying the remains belonged to a man who died of natural causes between AD90 and AD230.

The discovery of the remains, made during restoration work of a floor of a building annexed to the Vatican’s embassy, had given the girls’ families hope of finally knowing what happened to the them.

Via The Guardian