updated 11:22 a.m. ET March 12, 2008

MUNICH, Germany - A woman was stopped at Munich airport after baggage control handlers found the skeleton of her brother sealed in a plastic bag in her luggage, police said Wednesday.

The 62-year-old woman and her 63-year-old friend, who both live in Italy, were hauled in by airport police Tuesday after a scan of the bag showed a human skull and other bones. The women were traveling to Italy from Brazil.

It turned out that the woman was trying to fulfill the last wish of her brother — who died 11 years ago in Sao Paulo, Brazil — to be buried in Italy.

The travelers produced the appropriate papers from Brazilian authorities for the unusual transport, and were allowed to carry on their way to Naples — bones and all.

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