Man arrested after macabre 'human skin teddy bear' left outside Victorville business, deputies say

VICTORVILLE, Calif. (KABC) -- A man accused of leaving a macabre "human skin teddy bear" outside of a Victorville convenience store on Sunday has been arrested, according to the San Bernardino County Sheriff's Department.

Hector Corona Villanueva, 23, was arrested and will be booked for causing a report of emergency while knowing it to be false and intentionally and wrongfully planting evidence to falsely present as real.

The sheriff's department confirmed that after the San Bernardino County Coroner's Office collected the teddy bear, it was determined that it was not made of any type of human remains or skin.

Deputies were called to the AMPM convenience store at Bear Valley Road and Amethyst Road just after noon after someone reported finding an object that appeared to be covered in human remains. The "human skin teddy bear" was left on the ground right outside the convenience store, video shows.

"Incidents such as this take up valuable emergency resources and put the public at risk, possibly delaying response time to legitimate calls for service," the sheriff's office said. "We would like to thank those that reported information that was helpful during the investigation of this case."

READ MORE: Artist says he made macabre 'human skin teddy bear' that sparked Victorville investigation

The coroner's office was called to pick the bear up. Meanwhile, a South Carolina artist says he recently sold the bear to a customer in Victorville.

On Sunday, Eyewitness News spoke to a South Carolina artist who said he made the bear at the center of the investigation. He said it was made out of latex.

The artist, Robert Kelly of Dark Seed Creations, specializes in horror special effects and haunted attractions. He confirmed he shipped one of the bears to a customer in Victorville last week.

Kelly thought it was a routine order until his phone started blowing up on Sunday when fans recognized the bear as his artwork.

"I guess I'd probably be lying if I said I wasn't enjoying it a little bit. You know, I'm an independent artist, so you know, I know what starving artist life feels like. So, a little attention is sometimes good regardless of not being able to condone whatever," Kelly told Eyewitness News. "I mean, I don't know if the guy broke any laws or it was just a prank, but it looks like he definitely got some people riled up."

If you're curious, the "human skin teddy bear" sells for $165.