A human foot, stuffed inside a black sock and shoe, has been found along Vancouver Island’s Botanical Beach, officials in Canada said.
Authorities do not suspect foul play, according to Barb McLintock with the British Columbia Coroners Service.
She said officials believe the foot separated naturally after a lengthy exposure to water, and then washed up on the beach. A hiker found the foot on Sunday.
The shoe found with the foot was first sold in North America in March 2013, read a statement from the BC Coroners Service, which added that it believes the shoe’s owner died sometime between March 2013 and December 2015.
The discovery is not the first time a human foot has washed up on the shores of British Columbia.
Including the foot found this week, 13 feet have washed up along the coastline since 2007, the statement said. Authorities were able to identify 10 of those feet, which belonged to seven individuals.
CNN newsgathering partner CBC News quoted an official as saying that he believes most cases were determined to be suicides. Officials said at least one case in 2008 was a hoax.
