Police recover human skulls

KATHMANDU (Reuters) - Nepali police have recovered a mysterious consignment of parts of human skulls packed in bags in southeast Nepal near the border with India, police said on Wednesday.

The seizure of 168 pieces of skulls carved like bowls was made late on Tuesday at Kakarvitta, 275 km (172 miles) southeast of Kathmandu, on the border with India.

"During our regular border patrol we found three abandoned bags. They were full of human skulls," police official Yadav Dhakal said.

Dhakal said the motive for collecting the human skulls was not clear.

In the past police have said skulls were sometimes made into decorative and curiosity items which fetched high prices.

(Reporting by Gopal Sharma; Editing by Alistair Scrutton and Sugita Katyal)