When it comes to living the rich and lavish lifestyle of the Hollywood elites and tech billionaires, there is no better place than Atherton, a small town in San Mateo County, California. As of 2020, there are only a little over 7,000 people who call Atherton home and most, if not all, are extremely wealthy. In November of 2021, PropertyShark ranked Atherton the most expensive ZIP code in America for the fifth straight year. Former residents included Stephen Curry, Paul Allen, Eric Schmidt, and even Lindsey Buckingham. But while reserved for the rich and famous, landscapers found a car buried with bags of concrete inside. The workers immediately notified police when they smelled what they believed to be human remains.

According to a news release from the Atherton police, “Due to the unknown nature of why the vehicle was buried, cadaver dogs were called to the scene. The cadaver dogs made a slight notification of possible human remains. The San Mateo Crime Lab was contacted and sent technicians to assist with excavating the vehicle. Excavation is ongoing and at this time, no human remains have been located. The vehicle was possibly buried sometime in the 1990’s and was buried approximately 4 – 5 feet into the ground. There were unused bags of concrete throughout the vehicle. The vehicle was buried before the current homeowner occupied the home.”

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The yard in which the car was found is owned by Meta software engineer Paul Saab, his wife, Condon Saab, and their three children. Condon is currently pregnant with their fourth child. They bought the home in March of 2020. It was originally built in 1990 and sold in 2014 for $7.3 million. It is currently estimated to be valued at around $15 million.

In the first 12 hours after the car was discovered and police investigated, Atherton police Cmdr. Daniel Larsen noted that no human remains have been found. The homeowners are not under any suspicion at this time. Authorities were able to retrieve the registration from the vehicle but refused to give the name of the owner as the investigation is ongoing.

Atherton residents like Athena Ogawa were stunned. She said, “It’s a mystery in my own neighborhood. It’s strange, but it was really fascinating to see this all this happening. I just want to see how this plays out.”

Another resident, Peter Sun, added, “It’s kind of strange. But usually, it’s pretty safe and it’s like everyone is kind of doing their own thing.”

Online users offered their opinion, suggesting, “It may not have human remains in it but that car may be a treasure trove of evidence regarding an unsolved crime. Blood spatters, hair, VIN, etc. Usually, it’s only those geezers my age and older who bury cars on their property, not homeowners in posh locales.”