Skull mysteriously ends up in closet Officials say itwas supposed to be at the Medical Examiner's Office. ‘By ANDREW DUNN Tienes Staff Writer ST. PETERSBURG— AsSteven Blackwell's neighbors searched his house for money to bail him out of jail, they found rooms full of chains, pornography and knives. They also found something even more unsettling—a human skull It was identified Friday as that of Allen Garner, a homeless Hills- borongh County man who was found beaten to death in 2003. But how it ended up in Black- well's closet has sheriff's depur ties puzzled. ‘They thought itwas safely with ‘the medical examiner. ‘Gamer's skeletal remains— his tohave methamphetamine and marijuana, and was held on $60,650 bail, records show. Blackwell called and asked his neighbor Glenn Parker, 34, to go through his house 1ook- ing for money or things to sell tohelp him pay for bail. Tt wasn't an unusual request. Parker said he had done other small favors in the time they'd lived next to each other. But Parker and his friend Kerry Sedloek, who went with him, were shocked by what they found in Blackwell's rom. They said they saw stacks of pornographic magazines, sex toys, chains, handcuffs, knives, swords and machetes scattered throughout the house, And a box in the closet hold- ing the skull, with bits of flesh still stuck to it. Parker called the sheriff's office, and detectives sent the skull in for testing. “He was intosome dangerous stuff” Parker said. “I thought he was all right until [saw the skull” Steven Blackwell told police that a friend gave him the skull of a slain man several years ago. skull among them — were found ina wooded area in Tampa, said ED. Callaway, a spokesman for the Hillsborough County Sher- iff's Office, And Ronald L. Rhodes, 44, was convicted of first-degree murder in his killing. He is now in state prison serving a life sentence, aceording to Florida Department of Correetions records. ‘The remains, meanwhile, ‘were transported to the Hillsbor- ough County Medical Examiner's Office yearsago, deputies said. So how did his skull wind up ina St. Petersburg closet? “We have no clue,” Callaway said in a telephone interview. “The last we knev, it was at the medical examiner's office” A spokesman for the Hillsbor- ough County Medical Examiner's Office could not be reached for comment Fridaynight, Blackwell, £0, told police that a friend gave him the skull sev- eral years ago. He was arrested June 3 after a sting in which he is aceused of selling cocaine to an undereover officer while toting a machine gun, He was also found See SKULL.7B SCOTTKEELER | Times