Man walking dog finds human hand belonging to woman buried at New York cemetery

NEW YORK — A dog and its owner made an eerie discovery while on a walk in New York City on Thursday afternoon.

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Officials said a human hand was found near the North Mount Loretto State Forest in the Pleasant Plains area of Staten Island around 2:30 p.m. on Thursday, according to WPIX.

Officials with the city medical examiner’s office confirmed to the news outlet that it was a right hand.

Fingerprint analysis of the human hand found that it belonged to a 63-year-old woman who died in 2011 and was buried at Resurrection Cemetery, WABC reported. The cemetery was about a mile away from where the hand was found.

The plot next to her grave was excavated on Feb. 27 for a new burial site, the news outlet reported. The woman’s casket was reportedly damaged during the excavation process and it is believed that may explain why her hand was found by the dog.

Police say it is unclear how the hand ended up a mile away, according to WPIX.