The severed head of a husband whose wife poisoned herself has been found set in concrete inside a barrel - on the day of her funeral.
The gruesome discovery came as police in Veliko Trnanje, Serbia, carried out a search of the family home while the service was underway.
Mother-of-three Biljana Stojanovic, 38, was found dead in her barn after apparently killing herself on 26th June.
Now police believe she had killed and dismembered her husband Ivan Stojanovic, 40, three years earlier.
Local media reports that she locked the barn and told her children she had buried treasure inside and they should not tell anyone about it, keeping the only key with her at all times.
She then reportedly lied to her children about their father for the next three years, claiming he was working in Russia and living with a new partner.
A cousin, name not disclosed, told local media they are convinced she killed her husband after he returned from a two-year stint working in Russia.
The cousin suspects that Biljana put her husband to sleep with pills before killing him and cutting up his body.
Family members think she probably had help from one of her lovers.
The day before she killed herself, she told her three children that their father was returning to Serbia and they would all live together in a new home in Belgrade where the eldest 19-year-old daughter was starting a university course.
Nobody was able to get hold of Biljana for the rest of the day and the teen received a message from an unknown number, believed to be from one of her mother’s lovers.
It told her: “What you are looking for is right inside the barn. Your mother committed suicide, she took medication.”
During Biljana's funeral on 28th June, Ivan's brother reportedly found his body in the barrel in the barn and everything came to light.
So far, the investigation shows that Biljana had no accomplices when she allegedly killed and dismembered her husband.
Ivan’s remains indicate that he probably died around three years ago, when Biljana is suspected of killing him.
Two men have reportedly been questioned by the police during the investigation so far, a lawyer named as Aleksandar Lazarevic, 28, allegedly one of Biljana’s lovers, and a man who worked with Ivan in Russia.
There is currently no evidence suggesting either man was involved in Ivan’s death, according to reports.
A room in the family home is missing carpet and the authorities suspect that Ivan’s body was dismembered there and the flooring was later destroyed.
The couple is survived by three children, a 19-year-old daughter, a 14-year-old daughter, and a 10-year-old son.
The investigation is ongoing.
