Link: https://old.reddit.com/r/nosleep/comments/1twgajd/the_suspect_we_were_chasing_died_four_days_ago/

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The original was posted on /r/nosleep by /u/Ok_Listen_6600 on 2026-06-04 07:18:32+00:00.

My name is John, and at thirty-two years old, I’ve been with the department for a few years now, working ordinary night shifts in rural Illinois. Beside me was Miller, my senior partner a ten-year veteran who usually kept his mouth shut.

One year ago, we received an unusual call. It was a break-in at the local morgue, not the most common place for criminal activity. However, considering the chemicals stored there, it wouldn't be out of the realm of possibility that drug addicts might be interested.

We took the call, and when we arrived, the custodian was waiting outside, visibly shaken. He explained that when he was mopping the floor, he saw something moving in his peripheral vision. When he looked up, he saw someone running across the hallway and disappear into a room. The problem was that the lights were off while he was cleaning, so he couldn't get a clear look at who it was. Feeling vulnerable and exposed, he thought it was best to call the police.

At first, we suspected it could've been kids messing around, or maybe the custodian had seen things in the dark. But his certainty convinced us to investigate. We entered the morgue and began calling out to anyone who might be inside. With the custodian leading the way, we started walking down the main corridor, checking the side rooms as we went. Each room revealed nothing unusual: labs for analysis, storage for tools, and paperwork.

I entered a dark room. I turned on the lights, and once the room was lit, I saw it was nothing more than a waiting room for the relatives of the deceased. I quickly swept the area, checking every spot where someone could be hiding, and just as I finished, I heard my partner's voice cut through the silence.

He was shouting, "Hey, stop! Turn around!"

Exiting the room quickly, I saw him standing in the hallway with his gun drawn, pointing towards the end of the corridor. "She went around the corner!" he explained, motioning to the left.

The custodian, now standing beside us, informed us that the left side led to a dead end. Realizing we had the intruder cornered, we moved towards the end of the corridor, reassuring her that she would be safe if she surrendered.

I peeked around the corner, seeing the woman standing at the end of the hallway. It was too dark for me to see her clearly, but I could make out her long, fair hair. Trying to de-escalate the situation, I stepped forward, hoping to speak with her. But as soon as she noticed me, she quickly opened a large gray door behind her and darted through it, slamming it shut.

I hurried to the door only to find it locked. I banged on the door, calling out for her to come out, but there was no response. My partner and the custodian joined me after hearing what happened.

The custodian seemed puzzled. He explained that the door couldn't be locked from the inside. With growing unease, he unlocked the door and we entered, weapons drawn. I swept the room with my flashlight, revealing an empty room. It felt cold, even for a morgue.

The space was mostly scattered equipment, but my attention was drawn to two gurneys in the center. One of the gurneys was covered by a sheet, a body-shaped lump beneath it. We immediately suspected that the woman was hiding beneath it, but as we approached, we noticed a sickening stench in the air. It was the unmistakable smell of decay.

I quickly pulled back the sheet. To our horror, underneath was the very woman we had just been chasing, a toe tag dangling from her foot. According to the tag, she died four days earlier.

Miller retired three months after that night, pulling up stakes and moving down south

We never talked about what we saw at the morgue, definitely not during the paperwork, and certainly not to the guys at the precinct. If you put a ghost in an official police report, they don't give you a medal they give you a psychological evaluation and a desk job. So, we buried it.

But you can’t really bury something like that.