A delivery man was arrested in Peru after he was caught with a Peruvian mummy up to 800-year-old inside a food delivery cooler bag. The man referred to the ancient male corpse as his "spiritual girlfriend" whom he dubbed "Juanita," reported New York Post.
Photos were released by The Ministry of Culture of Peru on Sunday showing a pre-Hispanic mummy, estimated to be between 600 to 800 years old. Police told CNN that the mummified remains were found with three men who were drinking in a deserted park in the Peruvian city of Puno.
Senior agent Marco Antonio Ortega, who is a spokesperson for Puno region's National Police, told CNN, "A 26-year-old man had a delivery bag labelled 'Pedidos Ya.' Inside they found a mummy," . Pedidos Ya is a Latin American food delivery app.
The man, identified as 26-year-old Julio Cesar Bermejo, revealed in an interview with the local news outlet Noticias Sin Filtro Puno TV that he had been sharing his room with the centuries-old skeleton, whom he nicknamed "Juanita," having mistakenly assumed it was female.
He said, "It sleeps in my bedroom, with me. There's my bed, the TV set and next to it, there's Juanita," Bermejo explained. "I take care of it. It's like if you'll pardon the expression as if it were my spiritual girlfriend."
He shared that the mummy was given to him by his father and had been a part of the family for 30 years. He did not share details on where he obtained the artefact.
The man, 26-year-old Julio Cesar Bermejo, will remain in detention while investigators look into the case, a government official told AFP on Tuesday.
"It's not a Juanita, it's a Juan," a specialist at the ministry affirmed, adding the mummy was of a man at least 45 years old.
The body was wrapped in bandages in the fetal position.
He denied he was trying to sell the mummy and said he was carrying it around because "my friends wanted to see it."
The culture ministry said it had taken possession of the mummified remains "with the aim of protecting and preserving this heritage."
Peru is rich in archaeological sites and objects. Its most visited tourist destination is the Inca citadel of Machu Picchu, built in the 15th century near Cusco.
