Skull found in Lealman home

LEALMAN -- Investigators say it appears a pile of debris caught fire in a utility room in the corner of the residence at 4550 39th St. N Friday. The residence is a total loss, said Marianne Pasha, spokeswoman for the Pinellas County Sheriff's Office.

She also said that shortly after arrest of the home’s resident, Stephen Blackwell, 40, earlier this month, detectives sent what appears to be a human skull found in the home to a lab in Gainesville for further examination.

An associate of Blackwell’s discovered it stored in a box in the closet. It is may have been used for academic purposes. Blackwell is in Pinellas County Jail on drug charges.

The bomb squad was called when deputies learned that the house may have held explosive substances. They found none, but certain chemicals were found, Pasha said.

-- Mariana Minaya, Times Staff Writer