A father of six who made a disturbing discovery of a small infant’s remains beneath floorboards has opened up about the impact it had on his mental well-being.
David Dent, a construction worker from Bishop Auckland, County Durham, stumbled upon a bundle wrapped in a newspaper dating back over a century, while renovating a building in the town in 2024. The bundle contained skeletal remains that experts determined to be of a full-term newborn, believed to have been more than 100 years old.
Following the unsettling find, David, 42, grappled with Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) and recounted how the fragile body of the infant disintegrated in his hands.
In an interview with The Sun, David described the moment he unraveled the package and came face to face with a tiny skull. He recalled feeling shocked and dropping it upon noticing a small arm and hand detaching from the remains. Subsequently, he contacted his wife, who advised him to inform the authorities.
After turning the remains over to local law enforcement, he was instructed to keep the discovery confidential until it was confirmed through media reports that the remains belonged to a baby.
The traumatic experience left David struggling with PTSD for several months, though he mentioned a recent improvement in his condition, stating, “I’ve not been too bad these last couple of months.”
David expressed his intention to pay his respects to the child, dubbed “Baby Auckland,” whose final resting place is Bishop Auckland Town Cemetery. An initial inquest suggested the infant lived and died between 1726 and 1812, but Detective Chief Inspector Melvin Sutherland proposed a timeframe of 1910.
The year 1910 was etched on the infant’s headstone, prompting David to express relief that the child had finally found peace. He plans to visit the grave at his own pace and leave a teddy bear as a tribute.
An inquest into the infant’s death was postponed and is now scheduled for September 17.
