If there’s anything we learned from CSI, it’s that no matter how perfect a murder may seem, it’s never unsolvable. Advancements in forensic and communication technology make it easier now for cops to solve the unsolved murder case than ever before. But sometimes, every once in a blue moon, comes along a case that raises more questions than it does answers. Nothing adds up. The only viable explanations becomes, “The aliens did it.”

In this article, we’ve listed down some of the most baffling, unexplainable and most horrifying deaths in history.

1. Ottavio Bottecchia

It was the summer of 1924. The Tour De France was taking place; 157 cyclists all racing to be crowned champions of one of the world’s most prestigious cycling races. Ultimately, Ottavio Bottecchia claims it, and in the process becoming the first Italian to do so. Crowds loved him, and things were looking good for Mr. Bottecchia. He won again the following year, in 1925. What could go wrong for Ottavio? Everything apparently.

Two years on from his second Tour De France win, Ottavio Bottecchia‘s body was found on the side of the road near the village of Poenis. His bicycle was nearby, lying on the ground but seemingly undamaged. Nothing suggested foul play – except for his smashed skull, broken collarbone and ragged clothing. He was quickly transferred to a nearby hospital, but never regained consciousness from his coma and died 12 days later.

What circumstances led to him being in such an unfortunate state is really anyone’s guess. Authorities surmised that Bottecchia had a sun stroke and fell off his bike, which is just a tiny bit ridiculous since sun strokes don’t lead to blunt force trauma to the skull and bones. A more likely but still somewhat far-fetched scenario is that he was killed by the order of Italian higher-ups for speaking out against the authoritarian regime of Benito Mussolini. How no one saw a bunch of (probably beefy, gnarly-looking) gentleman shove him off his bike and proceed to beat the life out of him is also quite strange. The theories are there, but no one is certain of the truth.

 

2. Christopher Case

Christopher Case was found dead in the bathtub of his Seattle apartment in April, 1991. One of his friends went to the police as she was worried about him – and she was right, evidently. The weird bit is, no one’s quite sure how he died. He was fully clothed, with no clear signs of a struggle or a break-in. The coroner report determined that the likely cause of death was ‘acute myocarditis’, which translates roughly into ‘his heart stopped, and we’re not sure why’.

That’s not where the weirdness stops. In fact, it’s hardly begun. As the police were inspecting the apartment, they saw that Case had crucifixes hanging on the walls, and candles in every room. He even had salt lining the walls and the porch. It all became somewhat clear when the police interviewed Case’s friend. Apparently when Case went on a trip to San Francisco, he met a woman who developed romantic feelings for him. Two important details from the info are: one is that this woman claimed to be a witch; and second, Case had turned down her romantic advances. Case was utterly convinced that this witch had placed him under a curse, saying he didn’t feel safe even in his own home.

As you might expect, no evidence was found to embolden Case’s claims. But what other explanation justifies finding a completely healthy, 35-year-old man with no history of heart disease, who doesn’t drink, smoke or do any drugs, dead in his bathtub due to heart failure?

 

3. Morgan Dana Harrington

As part of their World Magnetic Tour, Metallica was due in Charlottesville, Virginia in October 17th, 2009. Morgan Harrington, a 20-year-old student at nearby Virginia Tech, Blacksburg and an avid Metallica fan, was set on going with her friends. The day came, Morgan and her friends went and were among the thousands in the audience.

Morgan needed to use the restroom, and figured it was better to go during the opening act rather than risk missing Metallica playing live. She told her friends she would pop off to the bathroom – and that was the last time they had seen her alive.

She never returned for Metallica’s opening song, and her friends grew concerned. When they called her, she explained that she wasn’t allowed back in by security as there was a ‘no re-entry policy’. That was red flag number one, since there were bathrooms inside the venue, so Morgan had no reason to be outside anyway. However, she assured her friends that she was fine and that she’ll find a way home, so they should just stay and enjoy the show.

Except Morgan never got back home. The last time she was seen was outside the venue, unaccompanied and likely hitchhiking back to Blacksburg. Her disappearance was worked by the police for the next few weeks, but there efforts were futile. That was until a farmer on the outskirts of Charlottesville found skeletal remains, which, after testing, turned out to be the remains of Morgan Harrington.

No one knows any details on how she ended up there and no killer has been apprehended as of yet. It remains one of the most baffling crimes in recent history.

 

4. Zigmund Adamski

It was a summer evening in 1980, in the small town of Tingley, England when a 56-year-old Zigmund Adamski stepped out to do a bit of shopping. He never returned. Five days later, a body turned up in a coal mine 20 miles away in another city. It was determined to be the body of Zigmund Adamski, who reportedly died of a heart attack.

Okay, that’s weird — but not especially weird. Why is it on the list?

This is why. Adamski’s body was found at 3:45 pm, in broad daylight just a few hours after the work site closed for the day. Nobody saw anyone or anything in that area all day. So whoever put him there must’ve done it in the broad daylight without being noticed. There were no footprints in the coal, and there was no coal dust on the body itself. It was almost like the body was dropped from the sky. Adding to the peculiarity is the fact that Adamski looked quite well-fed and had a day’s worth of stubble on his face. He seemed well taken care of, despite the fact that he was missing for five days. Finally, there were some burns on his face, neck and shoulders. No one could come up with a satisfactory explanation to what happened to Zigmund Adamski.

Allen Godfrey, one of the policemen who found Adamski’s body and also a firm believer of the existence of extraterrestrials, surmised that it was aliens. Unsurprisingly, people laughed at him.

But the true story behind the final days of Zigmund Adamski are anyone’s guess.

 

5. Elisa Lam

The body of Elisa Lam was found in the water tank on the roof of the Hotel Cecil on February 19th, 2013. This specific hotel already had a pretty shady reputation, seeing as it was the base of notorious serial killer Richard Ramirez (also known as Night Stalker). But what really made the case disturbing is how Elisa Lam was acting prior to her mysterious death.

Authorities concluded that Elisa Lam had died after drowning in the water tank by accident, but that was far from a satisfactory explanation. For starters, the water tank was so tightly sealed that authorities had to drill their way through it just to retrieve the body. In addition, Elisa Lam would’ve had to go through a series of locked, supposedly inaccessible doors, climb a rooftop ladder and remove a heavy, padlocked door just to get access to the water tank. Sounds like a drag.

Unfortunately for you, Elisa and almost everyone else, this isn’t even the weirdest bit of the story. After Lam went missing, a video surfaced. It was…intense, to say the least. The footage shows Elisa getting into an elevator, and frantically pushing all the buttons, as if willing it to close as fast as humanly possible. The doors refuse to close. This visibly freaks out Elisa, who begins to peer wildly outside the elevator, as if she was being chased by a wild animal and has only found temporary respite. She cowers down, trying to hide. After a bit, Elisa steps out of the elevator and begins to gesture wildly to someone or something off-screen. She walks away, still looking not quite right, and that was the last anyone ever saw Elisa Lam alive.

Toxicology reports show that Elisa Lam wasn’t under the influence of alcohol or any drugs by the time she died, which just adds to the mystery surrounding her death. Put simply, no one’s got a bloody clue as to what happened.

 

Unsolved Mysteries

These stories are just the tip of the iceberg when it comes to creepy, downright inexplicable deaths. Some unfortunate people have met their fates in ways that continue to baffle authorities and police. Of course, conspiracy theorists have a field day, but ultimately, no one is really sure at all.