Human Skull Found by Family During Easter Egg Hunt at California Park

Children searching for Easter eggs along a walking trail at DeForest Park in Long Beach stumbled upon a human skull partially buried in the dirt, triggering a major law enforcement response on Easter Sunday that stretched into the following week.

The discovery was made at approximately 5 p.m. on April 5, 2026, at the 50-acre park located at 6255 De Forest Avenue, roughly 20 miles south of downtown Los Angeles. The family, participating in an independent egg hunt rather than a city-organized event, encountered not only a skull but also small bones scattered nearby. They told reporters off-camera that what they found appeared to be "the human skull and other bones of a small child."

Long Beach Police Department officers responded and called in the Los Angeles County Medical Examiner's Office. LBPD spokeswoman Andrea Moran confirmed the remains were human. Preliminary, though unconfirmed, reports indicated the skull was small and may belong to an infant.

Investigators erected a white canopy in an area of dense brush near the trail, a standard tool in death investigation scenes, while yellow crime scene tape cordoned off a portion of the park. At least one Long Beach Fire Department truck was also present. The Medical Examiner's Special Operations Response Team was deployed to conduct a systematic search of the surrounding terrain for additional remains, which will be transported to the Los Angeles County Forensic Science Center for examination.

What investigators cannot yet determine from visual inspection alone is how long the remains have been at the site, a question with significant implications for any potential criminal or missing persons investigation. Identifying a skull without surrounding context is methodically slow. Medical examiners can apply odontology analysis if teeth are present, and DNA extraction from bone can take weeks to return laboratory results. Establishing time since death in an outdoor environment requires analysis of bone condition, soil composition, and insect activity, all of which Forensic Science Center examiners will assess.

As of Monday, police confirmed no additional remains had been found within the immediate area. A police spokesperson said officers remained on scene at DeForest Park while awaiting the full response of the Medical Examiner's Office.

Eyewitness Marc Zaldana, who was at the park for an Easter gathering and encountered the family shortly after the discovery, described the mood: "Pretty tragic. It's a day you want to spend with family. You don't expect something like this. You expect to have a wholesome time." He added: "At first we saw the family there, doing like an Easter egg hunt, but they were freaking out a little bit. I can only imagine, like for them, finding a dead, another kid. Must be tragic for them."

Long Beach resident Jessica Flores said the discovery shook her. "It hurts because if it's a child, that's very sad," she said. "I just hope they figure out who's child this is."

DeForest Park, which encompasses freshwater wetlands and a river parkway in addition to its trail system, sits within a dense residential section of Long Beach. Whether the remains are connected to a crime or an open missing persons case remains the central question as forensic examination begins.