2 wanted for allegedly stealing human remains from New Orleans apartment building

NEW ORLEANS -- Police in New Orleans are seeking two people accused of stealing human remains from an apartment building in July.

The suspects allegedly stole "a bicycle and of a package containing the remains of a deceased person" from the apartment, according to the New Orleans Police Department. They then fled the scene, police said.

Though the incident happened in July, police released information on the case Thursday.

The stolen vehicle's owner, Katrina Brees, 46, later told ABC News it had not been a bicycle, but a cargo tricycle.

The cremated remains had been those of her neighbor's 23-year-old niece, Brees said.

Brees first became aware the cremains had been stolen when the neighbor left a note in the building entrance explaining what had been in the FedEx package and asking for it to be returned. Upon reviewing security camera footage, Brees realized thieves had taken the package, along with her tricycle.

Brees' neighbor, Stephanie, who asked to be identified solely by her first name for privacy reasons, told ABC News she is devastated to have lost the cremains of her niece, Brittany, who unexpectedly died last year.

Along with Brittany's ashes, Stephanie's family had sent a piece of art the young woman had made before her death.

"It means I can't let her go, I can't tend to my mourning -- and I won't be able to either," Stephanie said. "It was the one chance I had at receiving her remains."

Police initially said the incident occurred on July 26 but later clarified it was July 18. They said the police report for the incident was taken on July 26.

Police shared photos and are asking for the public's assistance in identifying and locating the two suspects.

New Orleans police did not provide further information on the circumstances of the theft when asked by ABC News.

The cargo tricycle, adorned with a papier-mché sculpture of a grasshopper head, was part of a fleet of miniature floats made by Brees' Mardi Gras parade krewe, the Krewe of Kolossos.

"When it's released into the parade, it looks as if a carousel of animals is riding down the street," Brees said, noting that the grasshopper trike had been in use for about a decade.