Tenant arrested after dismembered remains of landlord found in her freezer

CHICAGO — Police took a suspect into custody after finding human remains in a freezer while investigating a report of a missing person.

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Investigators told The Associated Press that they believe the victim is the 55-year-old owner of the building, and that a suspect is in custody.

Chicago Police Chief of Detectives Brendan Deenihan told WBBM that the victim rents out rooms in her home to tenants, and that one of those tenants called police on Monday night to report the owner missing. The caller told police that there was a person living in the home whom other residents were afraid of, Deenihan told the station.

When police arrived at the scene, they were met by the person who called to report the woman missing, who said that they saw the suspect call a tow truck and carry a heavy bag out to the truck, WFLD reported.

“I thought it was strange, because I thought, ‘Why is she coming out of the house towards the street when her trash can is in the back?’” Phoebe Salzmann, a neighbor, told WBBM. “And I recall also like, the woman was wearing a black puffy coat, and I thought, it’s weird — it’s 70 degrees outside.”

When police went into the home, they said they found dismembered human remains in a freezer, WMAQ reported.

Police were able to locate the tow truck driver, who told them that after he picked up the woman, he took her to Foster Beach where she dropped the large bag into a garbage can, WFLD reported. Police said when they found the bag, it was filled with blood-soaked rags.

The Cook County Medical Examiner’s Office told WLS that additional remains found in the garbage can were determined not to be human, WLS reported.

The truck driver told WBBM that the suspect was behaving strangely, and pulled a knife on him at the end of the ride. He was not hurt.

Police told WMAQ they took the suspect into custody after going to the location where the truck driver dropped her off.

Police have not released the names of either the suspect or the victim.

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