Identified! CA - Out-of-town family finds unidentified body in freezer of home they were staying at - Dec 23, 2023 - Mary Margaret Haxby-Jones

[TootsieFootsie]

Neighbours who have been there for six years said they didn't see a woman there.
If she died 9 years ago that may be why.

But what about neighbours who've been there for over 9 years.
Unless she died somewhere else. But LE seems to think that she had lived in the house.

Re her relatives not wanting to comment. Maybe they think the public might judge them in a negative way.

I hope behind the scenes they are talking to LE with what they do know, even if they've not had contact with Mary for a long time.

 

[Izzylizzy]

I hadn't read this before.

"The family members are related to someone who currently lives in the home and are not related to the woman found in the freezer, according to police. Police added the freezer was running when the body was found"

Body found in San Diego home's freezer may be woman missing for 9 years, police say

The body found in a San Diego freezer last month may have been that of a woman who has been missing or dead for up to nine years, the San Diego Police Department said.

news.yahoo.com

 

[cenazoic]

Regardless of who’s related to who (or not) did the current occupants never open this mysterious running freezer?

 

[Izzylizzy]

This writer used creative license when reporting on the mysterious death and discovery of Mary.

From Missing to Frozen: The Bizarre Case of Mary Margaret Haxby-Jones Unfolds in San Diego - Its So San Diego

The shocking discovery of 81-year-old Mary Margaret Haxby-Jones found dead inside a freezer in an Allied Gardens home has taken a darker turn as more

itssosandiego.com

 

[Izzylizzy]

Regardless of who’s related to who (or not) did the current occupants never open this mysterious running freezer?

Fingerprints?

 

[Auntie Cipation]

If, after Mary's death, there was only one remaining occupant of the house (son, husband, nephew, etc), that person may have then rented out a bedroom to someone unrelated, whose family came to visit THEM.

(My father did this with our 3-bedroom family home after he was divorced and I left for college, leaving him alone in the house -- he found a tenant who lived in the house for well over a decade and presumably had his own family visit him now and then.)

MOO

 

[carbuff]

My take/guess: Mary Jones, the deceased woman, owned the house and when she died, the 77-year-old Haxby put her in the freezer so he wouldn't lose the house. His family could have visited multiple times since then; as was pointed out earlier, people don't often open other people's freezers.

If he told them, "Mary sold me the house and moved in with a relative," it's unlikely anybody would have questioned him or tried to check on it.

Part of the Haxby family is from Massachusetts. I'm hoping there might be an article here with a local twist.

 

[Sjöberg]

My take/guess: Mary Jones, the deceased woman, owned the house and when she died, the 77-year-old Haxby put her in the freezer so he wouldn't lose the house. His family could have visited multiple times since then; as was pointed out earlier, people don't often open other people's freezers.

I think similarly.
Earlier, I mistakenly used the word widower, when I meant a widow, sorry, English is not my native language and sometimes I mix random stuff up.

Anyways, I think the person who put poor Mary into a freezer was her non-married intimate partner who may, or may have not, partnered her with the sole aim of taking her house and money. Just MOO, but something among these lines makes sense with the info we have. He may or may have not also killed her.

 

[CuriousCricket]

I think similarly.
Earlier, I mistakenly used the word widower, when I meant a widow, sorry, English is not my native language and sometimes I mix random stuff up.

Anyways, I think the person who put poor Mary into a freezer was her non-married intimate partner who may, or may have not, partnered her with the sole aim of taking her house and money. Just MOO, but something among these lines makes sense with the info we have. He may or may have not also killed her.

This all fits with the information so far. The only thing I can't think of an explanation for is that the body was "badly decomposed". If she was put into the freezer upon her death . . . well, I suppose a storm or something that knocked the electric out for a long period of time might account for that. But, locked frozen in an insulated chest, the body would have to thaw, decompose, then refreeze . . . . wonder how long that would take. I do wonder at the condition of the body. Was the "badly decomposed" added by one media outlet? Was the body decomposing before being put into the freezer ? It's difficult to think of that and doesn't make much sense. Perhaps the person who eventually tucked her into the freezer wandered around for days trying to figure out the dilemma? Frozen but badly decomposed?

 

[carbuff]

It's more likely that badly decomposed in this instance means desiccated or mummified. Like the way a chicken forgotten at the back of the freezer becomes just freezer burn and bones.

 

[acutename]

<modsnip: quoted post was removed> If you focus in on the cars/front of house, the Prius has a sticker that says ""US Army Retired" and the house has a yellow sign that says "CAUTION Do NOT Watch ___(some obscured word)" FWIW

 

[acutename]

My take/guess: Mary Jones, the deceased woman, owned the house and when she died, the 77-year-old Haxby put her in the freezer so he wouldn't lose the house. His family could have visited multiple times since then; as was pointed out earlier, people don't often open other people's freezers.

If he told them, "Mary sold me the house and moved in with a relative," it's unlikely anybody would have questioned him or tried to check on it.

Part of the Haxby family is from Massachusetts. I'm hoping there might be an article here with a local twist.

so no death certificate...no will... he continues to use her accounts and pay the bills? Still having mail come to her house? Uses her SS? Or abandons it? A lot of loose ends.

 

[Auntie Cipation]

After looking at the state of the porch area on the google street view, I'm wondering if this may have been a hoarding situation.

It looks to me like a length of short brown fence is propped up in such a way as to try to block the ground view of the door area. This jury-rigged attempt to block a view from the public, combined with the signs and overall state of the front of the house, fits with my experiences with hoarders. MOO

 

[ifindedout]

If you focus in on the cars/front of house, the Prius has a sticker that says ""US Army Retired" and the house has a yellow sign that says "CAUTION Do NOT Watch ___(some obscured word)" FWIW

BBM
It reads DO NOT WATCH ARC. Welding and/or cutting with acetylene torches was going on there, which I addressed in this post upthread:

Identified! - CA - Out-of-town family finds unidentified body in freezer of home they were staying at - Dec 23, 2023 - Mary Margaret Haxby-Jones

I've driven myself to that hospital ER a couple of times. The freezer house is only a few blocks away from the hospital. Close enough to get medical help right away. Kaiser Medical Center and Hospital down the hill going towards Mission Gorge.

www.websleuths.com

edited text of sign, which didn't have the word THE in it like they sometimes do, also to post and source a similar sign:

OSHA Caution Safety Sign: Do Not Watch Arc

Prevent eye injuries and potential blindness by warning others not to watch welding arcs.

www.accuform.com

 

[carbuff]

so no death certificate...no will... he continues to use her accounts and pay the bills? Still having mail come to her house? Uses her SS? Or abandons it? A lot of loose ends.

Yeah, lots of loose ends, but nothing that would automatically have drawn attention to the situation. With those high walls, most of the mess wouldn't even be visible.

 

[ifindedout]

After looking at the state of the porch area on the google street view, I'm wondering if this may have been a hoarding situation.

It looks to me like a length of short brown fence is propped up in such a way as to try to block the ground view of the door area. This jury-rigged attempt to block a view from the public, combined with the signs and overall state of the front of the house, fits with my experiences with hoarders. MOO

The ersatz fencing also conveniently stops curious people from getting blinded by the welding/cutting arc I just mentioned. The letter carrier and package delivery people would be most in danger from this, followed by door-to-door solicitors and casual onlookers. Which doesn't take away from the likelihood that hoarding was also happening as you suggest; an aerial view shows lots of junk along the side of the home.

4914 Zion Ave · 4914 Zion Ave, San Diego, CA 92120

Building

www.google.com

 

[carbuff]

The ersatz fencing also conveniently stops curious people from getting blinded by the welding/cutting arc. The letter carrier and package delivery people would be most in danger from this, followed by door-to-door solicitors and casual onlookers. Which doesn't take away from the likelihood that hoarding was also happening as you suggest; an aerial view shows lots of junk along the side of the home.

The line between a junk scavenger and a hoarder is thin...

 

[Curious Me]

The ersatz fencing also conveniently stops curious people from getting blinded by the welding/cutting arc I just mentioned. The letter carrier and package delivery people would be most in danger from this, followed by door-to-door solicitors and casual onlookers.... snipped to reply...​

Why does it say 4918 though?


ETA- The pic below has one of the newer green trash cans for organic waste. Those cans were issued just last year. It could've been left there by the city. It says June 2023, so that is how the house looked this year. Can't mail carriers refuse to deliver mail?

One of those cars might've been Mary's? I do think there was a car loving male living there, but not sure if he just came around once in awhile or what. The neighbors saw him, but not sure any talked to him. A hoarder definitely would put off addressing things, and Mary might've been an "out of sight, out of mind" concern

All my own thoughts here-- How Mary died is the most important detail. I don't know how LE will handle this case if it turns out she died of natural causes and a relative with hoarding or other issues placed her in the freezer. I doubt they'll end up being charged.

Zion Ave. is a well-traveled street and main thoroughfare to get down the hill to Mission Gorge where there's shopping centers, medical bldgs. and restaurants. There's a school yard right across the street from the house too. So, many, many people were driving by and walking by that house often. Like you say, @ifindedout, the mail carriers were in danger and the neighbors must've hated that mess driving down their property value. All this time, Mary was laying in the freezer being forgotten? ​

 

[Izzylizzy]

Finally, an anonymous neighbor speaks out but can't remember when she last saw Mary.
The same Mary she would greet whenever they crossed paths outside their homes.

How can you not remember when was the last time you saw a neighbor unless you yourself are dealing with memory loss?
About a year ago?
A long,long time ago,years , maybe 5 years?
But Marys not been seen for approx 9 years, one would think the neighbor would have said something about the length of time it actually is since she's seen Mary.

Body of woman found in freezer believed to be missing for 9 years

San Diego Police said family members from out of town were visiting when they discovered the body of Mary Margaret Haxby-Jones inside a chest freezer.

scrippsnews.com

 

[carbuff]

I don't find it that unusual that they wouldn't notice or remember.

There's a neighbor at the bottom of our hill that I haven't seen in ages. I have seen his car coming home late a time or two, but I couldn't actually swear he was driving it because he pulls directly into the garage. I see lights on at his house and the yard is taken care of. The last time our paths did cross face to face was early in the pandemic when we shouted briefly across the street to make sure we weren't getting too close to each other. He has a daughter but I haven't seen her in years; I think she might have been home for Christmas three years ago, maybe? He says she got a job in Memphis after graduation.

I'm starting to think I should make some kind of excuse to check on him.