Charges filed in Russian fetuses dumping

MOSCOW, Sept. 4 (UPI) -- Criminal charges have been brought in the dumping of 248 human fetuses in the Ural region in July, Russian officials said.

Police said charges were brought after investigators determined formaldehyde leaking from the containers polluted the ground in the wooded area, RIA Novosti reported Monday.

The preserved remains were discovered in four plastic barrels in a forest near Yekaterinburg, officials said.

The identity of the individual or entity against whom the charges were brought was not reported. The nature of the charges also wasn't reported.

The fetuses were labeled "medical waste" from the Urals State Medical Academy and should have been destroyed, officials said.