A missing persons' report has turned into a macabre murder mystery on Chicago’s North Side after human remains were discovered inside a freezer at a boarding house.
“It’s horrible. It just sends chills down my spine,” neighbor Phoebe Salzmann said.
Chicago police say they were called to the 5900 block of North Washtenaw on Monday for a wellbeing check after a tenant said they hadn’t seen a missing woman.
During that check, police say they found remains in the freezer, and they believe that the remains are that of the 55-year-old woman, who has not yet been formally identified.
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The woman owned the house, and police believe she rented a room to the person now suspected in her death.
“The suspect…lived in the residence,” chief of detectives Brendan Deenihan said. ‘The other tenants were afraid. The suspect had recently called a tow truck and carried a heavy bag out to the tow truck.”
Police say that tow truck transported a large plastic bag to Foster Beach. That’s where authorities say they found bloody rags and more human remains inside of a garbage can.
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“The tow truck driver actually gave us a location and explained the person he was transporting actually pulled a knife on him, so officers responded to that scene and placed the suspect into custody,” Deenihan said.
Salzmann says that she knew the landlord and described her as “very friendly.”
“Everyone knew her. She was very friendly,” she said. “When we first moved in, she’d come over to welcome us.”
An investigation remains underway into the brutal crime, but neighbors are stunned at the brutal act of violence that appears to have happened in their midst.
“There’s never been any issues in this neighborhood before,” Andy, a neighbor who lives near the boarding house, said.
