According to the Orange City Police Department, Kymberlee Schopper, 52, was arrested and charged with human tissue trafficking after it was alleged that she sold human remains on Facebook Marketplace and through her curio store “Wicked Wonderland” in Orange City, Florida.
Curio Shops: What Are They?
A curio shop is a type of retail store that focusses on selling uncommon, intriguing, or strange items, frequently of an antique kind. For collectors and fans of the unusual and distinctive, these shops usually provide a wide variety of oddities, collectibles, curiosities, and ornamental things. Antique medical equipment, historical artefacts, vintage taxidermy, and rare nature specimens are just a few of the things that can be found in curios shops.
The word “curio” is derived from “curiosity,” which reflects the store’s emphasis on items that arouse curiosity or amazement.
The Significance of It
Since online markets make these kinds of transactions more accessible, this case raises concerns about the enforcement of state laws safeguarding human remains and the junction of strange online commerce.
Things You Should Know
In December 2023, a local person complained that Wicked Wonderland was selling human bones on their Facebook page, sparking a thorough 15-month inquiry. The products ranged in price from $35 to $850 and included parts of a skull, ribs, vertebrae, a clavicle, a scapula, and a partial skull, according to police reports that FOX 35 Orlando reported.
Ashley Lelesi, Schopper’s business partner, allegedly acknowledged selling human bones for a number of years when questioned by police, but she denied knowing that Florida law forbade such transactions. Later, Schopper claimed that the bones were “educational models” that were shielded by state legislation.
Lelesi described the store’s collection of human bone fragments, which were purchased from private vendors, as “genuine human remains” and “delicate in nature.” Some remnants were identified by medical analysis as having archaeological origins; one bone sample was believed to be over 100 years old, and another to be over 500 years old.
What Individuals Are Saying
About the inquiry, Orange City Police Capt. Sherif El-Shami told The Daytona Beach News-Journal: “Real human bones aren’t found online very often. In Florida, it is indeed unlawful to sell human remains. I’m just relieved that it’s over.
After the arrest, Wicked Wonderland announced on Facebook that the store will be closed on weekends: “May vary from our usual schedule.”
What Follows
Schopper was charged with trading in human tissue but was later released on $7,500 bail from the Volusia County Branch Jail. On similar allegations, her business partner is awaiting arrest.
