ALAMEDA — Squatters apparently entered a home, stole a box containing human remains, trashed the place and changed the locks while the owner was away taking care of an ailing relative.

The victim told police she returned to her home on Lea Court, just blocks from downtown, on Monday being gone for three days to find a stranger inside.

The woman arrived at the house and was putting her dog into the lower level shortly before noon when she heard footsteps above her and notified authorities, Alameda police Wayland Gee said.

“She thought, ‘No one is supposed to be inside my house,’ ” Gee said Thursday.

Officers arrested Ambre Milan, 24, at 12:05 p.m. at the scene on suspicion of trespassing and released her with a citation.

Investigators suspect, however, that others may have been involved in illegally entering the house near Lincoln Avenue, which is about two blocks from City Hall and the Alameda Police Department.

Just what may have been stolen also remains unclear.

“The house was completely trashed,” Gee said, adding that the victim is still searching through her property for missing items.

“I’m still looking for my father’s ashes,” the woman, who did not wish to be identified, told ABC7, a media partner of this news organization. “So if you see a box that looks like Dad …”

Along with the container of human remains, a television was stolen, Gee said.

“They moved the furniture, even the washer and dryer,” the victim said.

Investigators suspect someone may have gained access to the home via an open window because there were no signs of forced entry.

Locks were changed on the doors. The changed locks, which fit the victim’s keys, were found inside the home, Gee said.

Investigators are reviewing footage from a nearby security camera.

The victim told ABC7 that a real estate website mistakenly said her home was in pre-foreclosure, which she noted cannot be true because she has no mortgage.

‘It’s devastating, and I don’t want it to happen to other people,” she said.

Anyone with information on the case is asked to call Alameda police at 510-337-8340.