A DISTURBING teddy bear seemingly made out of human skin sparked a major police response after it was found outside a convenience store on Sunday.
Multiple sheriff’s deputies blocked off the scene of the grim find, and a gloved coroner could be seen inspecting the sick teddy bear.
An unsettling discovery, resembling a figure with sewn human-like skin, lifelike eyes, and a nose, was found on a sidewalk in a California town, prompting the police to be called to investigate.
“A coroner investigator has taken custody of the object, and the investigation is ongoing,” stated Mara Rodriguez, Public Information Officer from SBCSD, as reported by KTLA.
News reports about the ordeal have claimed the toy animal was a prank, although a culprit has not been identified yet.
An Etsy seller called Dark Seed Creations claimed responsibility for crafting the item and confirmed they had recently shipped a similar bear to that part of California.
The special effects shop posted to Facebook, saying, “[S]omeone played a joke with one of my bears lol.”
“Yes I did ship that bear to an etsy customer in Victorville CA last week. Yes you can still order one too…No I did not have any knowledge of the buyers intentions nor was I involved in a prank on the other side of the nation from me.”
On the Etsy store, a wide range of realistic human skin products were listed for sale, from cowboy hats to wallets and teddy bears.
“Our stuff is pretty recognizable in the industry,” Dark Seed Creations’ Robert Kelly told KTLA.
“So once this happened a few hours ago, my phone started blowing up, Facebook started blowing up.”
For $165, the description read that the bear was made out of latex, and was “Perfect for snuggling or hiding in someone’s bed.”
It said that each of the bears are a different design.
In the product photos, the tanned flesh skin color bear had a fake human eye, with stitches up and down its body holding the pieces together.
As of early Monday the product was in over 20 customer carts on Etsy.
“One of things that we’re known for is that we make a lot of these props that are fake human skin,” Kelly said.
“Those are all made out of latex. They’re created from a mold.”
The teddy bear had dazzling reviews on Etsy from those who bought it prior to the alleged prank.
“This is absolutely a work of horror art,” wrote one buyer.
“This teddy bear not only looks super freaking creepy, It feels super freaking creepy.”
“The detail is amazing,” another said.
“[Y]ou can see all the hard work and talent it took to create.”
The shop has been running on Etsy for 8 years, and the products are seemingly made in South Carolina, according to its website.
