Taiwan Man Arrested for 'Stealing 35 Skeletons'

A Taiwanese man has been arrested over the theft of 35 skeletons which had been discovered at a construction site in the island's north, police said Wednesday.

The skeletons, unclaimed and apparently from an old burial ground, had been placed temporarily in a warehouse. The man allegedly stole them and took them to Taipei, where he was caught on Tuesday, police in Miaoli county said.

The suspect, who works for a funeral home and has a record of theft and drug abuse, said he was concerned the skeletons -- dug up during construction of a museum -- would be stolen because the warehouse was not locked, police said.

The man had put the skeletons in a truck and parked it near a Taipei park for nearly a month before he was arrested, they said.