San Antonio Police Find Human Fetus In Woman’s Purse During Drug Bust

San Antonio police officers found an eight-week-old human fetus in a woman’s purse while arresting her for drug possession. The woman, 32-year-old Bernadette Rivera, was confronted by police at a local park after she violated the park’s curfew hours. Police uncovered several different illegal narcotics on the woman including methamphetamine and heroine. The woman also informed police during her arrest that she had a fetus in her purse. Officers found the remains inside of a Q-Tip box and turned them over to a local funeral home.

The Daily Mail reports that 32-year-old Bernadette Rivera was arrested by police on several felony counts of illegal drug possession after she was stopped for violating Cassiano Park curfew on Thursday night. Police found the woman in the park after hours and proceeded to uncover a variety of drugs on the woman’s body including meth and heroine. The drugs were allegedly found near the woman’s genitals.

However, the drugs weren’t the only startling thing that police found Rivera carrying in her possession. The woman told police that she was carrying a deceased human fetus in her purse after suffering from a miscarriage. Police found the fetus in the woman’s purse inside of a Q-Tip box stuffed with a napkin. San Antonio Police Department Public Information Officer Romana Lopez notes that the fetus appeared to be about 8-weeks-old.

While finding a fetus in a woman’s purse during a drug bust is unusual, the San Antonio Police Department says that there was nothing illegal about carrying the fetus around in a purse. The woman explained to officers that she had sought care from a local hospital following the miscarriage and was told that she could decide how she wanted to dispose of the remains. Rivera decided it would be best to keep the remains and decide what to do with them later. Therefore, she wrapped the fetus in a tissue and placed it inside of a Q-Tip box and put it into her purse for safekeeping.

Sources: Police find fetus in woman’s purse during drug arrest at San Antonio park: https://t.co/72E1FJKUh9

— KVUE News (@KVUE) April 29, 2016

Rivera would be charged with three felony drug charges. No other charges relating to the fetus are expected. Meanwhile, police say that the fetus was taken to a funeral home. The department has followed up with the Rivera family who says funeral arrangements are being made.

This isn’t the first time that police officers have found a fetus in an unlikely place. As the Inquisitr previously reported, police made a gruesome discovery when searching an impounded vehicle. Michigan police officers found “more than a dozen” bottles containing “fetus parts” in the back of a local doctor’s impounded car. Dr. Michael Roth’s vehicle was impounded after he was involved in an accident with a disabled man near his medical office. In addition to finding “aborted fetus parts,” officers also found vials of the extremely potent anesthetic fentanyl. The discovery promoted authorities to investigate the doctor for performing illegal abortions.

Oddly, the woman with a fetus in her purse wasn’t the strangest thing that San Antonio police dealt with on Thursday night. Police were also called to a home after a neighbor reported hearing children crying in the backyard of a nearby home. When police arrived to the scene, two toddlers were found chained outside like dogs. A 2-year-old boy was found chained to the ground while a 3-year-old little girl was tied to a door with a dog leash. A pregnant mother-of-six was arrested on charges of child abuse in the bizarre case.

What do you think about the local hospital sending the woman home with the miscarried fetus to dispose of as she saw fit? Should the hospital have handled the situation differently?

[Image via San Antonio Police Department/ mugshot]