Investigators once again returned to Laurel United Cemetery in Cambria County Saturday as they continue to unravel what exactly happened in the Gallitzin Baby Murders.

Cambria County Coroner Jeff Lees said Saturday morning that he is “disgusted” by the circumstances of this case.

Lees said, “Just when you think you’ve seen it all, something else happens and, unfortunately, this is one of those times. You know, this forensic pathologist clearly took these two baby skulls without any authorization, and I want to expand on this during the autopsy of these five babies.”

That’s Lees referring to Doctor Halbert Fillinger, the forensic analyst that handled this case in 1980.

He told 6 News that, during the initial investigation, Fillinger asked former Cambria County Coroner John Barron if he could keep one of the baby’s skulls for himself.

Lees said that Barron gave Fillinger a clear “no, under no circumstances.”

But after two out of the original five skulls were recently discovered as a part of Fillinger’s donation to the Mutter Museum in Philadelphia after his death, Lees said it became clear that the pathologist disregarded Barron’s instructions.

Lees said, “It sickens Baron, it disgusts me. If this pathologist was alive today, I would have charges. I would be recommending the district attorney to prosecute.”

Lees said that now his team is trying to do the best thing possible to give this case closure and finally put these babies to rest.

It’s a story that’s haunted Cambria County for more than 40 years, and while the latest search at Laurel United Cemetery came up empty, one man said, without a doubt, he was there when five babies were buried on those grounds.

The mystery began in 1980, when five infant bodies were discovered in the attic of a Gallitzin home.

They were wrapped in newspapers from the 1920’s and 30’s.

2 out of the 5 skulls resurfaced decades later in a Philadelphia museum, sparking a renewed effort to find their burial site.

John Pupo, Laurel Crest maintenance worker, said, “We buried the babies back at the cemetery in 1980 and where the grave site is now, that’s where they were digging. That’s where the babies were buried, so we’re in the close proximity.”

Pupo, who worked maintenance at the time, said the box was wooden, slightly larger than normal and nailed shut.

He recalled the burial happened around noon, with just a few people present, including then Coroner John Barron, who stayed until the last scoop of dirt was laid.

Pupo said, “It was creepy. kI now and that these babies were there, and they say there was five in the box, but they never opened the box for the grave.”