Chicago woman’s body found in freezer, bloody towels in garbage at nearby beach, police say

Chicago police detectives are investigating the human remains of a dismembered woman found in a freezer inside her home and bloody towels found at a beach.

The woman owns a home in which several rooms were rented out to tenants, Chicago Police Chief of Detectives Brendan Deenihan said Tuesday. 

One of the tenants called the police Monday evening to report the woman missing. The tenants said they were afraid of one of the other renters and that the suspect had recently called a tow truck and carried a heavy bag to the truck. 

The caller exchanged numbers with the tow truck driver. Authorities said they later learned the suspect dumped a plastic bag in a garbage can at Foster Beach, about three miles from the home where the body was found. 

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When authorities searched the garbage can, they found bloodied towels inside. The area was secured as a crime scene and the towels were turned over to the Cook County Medical Examiner’s Office. 

When they checked the missing woman’s home, they found her remains in a freezer. They left the residence to secure a search warrant, Deenihan said. 

Upon speaking with the tow truck driver, the driver said the suspect pulled a knife on him, authorities said. 

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The unidentified suspect was arrested on suspicion of assault with a knife and declined to speak with investigators about the missing woman. 

The homicide investigation is ongoing. 

“We have a long way to go, but obviously we believe that the missing person is obviously unfortunately the individual we discovered,” Deenihan said.