UNSOLVED NY - Man goes to clear out dead mom’s home, finds body in freezer, Manhattan, 1 May 2020

[madfrank]

Okay, what happened to this case? The floor's open; someone please explain.

 

[carbuff]

I think probably the NYPD has other things on their mind the last couple of weeks

 

[madfrank]

Yeah. There's that. Now anyone about the case itself, which began over a month prior to the protests? Who, what, where, when, why, how? Anything to further discussion?

 

[carbuff]

Yeah. There's that. Now anyone about the case itself, which began over a month prior to the protests? Who, what, where, when, why, how? Anything to further discussion?

I have not been able to find word one and I don't think anybody else has either.

My experience with investigations in NYC is that we most likely won't ever hear anything. They don't put their missing in Namus, or don't make them public which amounts to the same thing. They don't make announcements, they don't put out press releases with updates, they don't respond to questions. There are a few good people here and there but organizationally, it's a black hole.

 

[Vaccine]

To my mind there are a number of challenges to storing a dead body in a freezer.
1) Heaving it in there. Particularly if you are an older lady. I would think you might need an accomplice.
2) Hiding or explaining away the absence of a murdered or deceased person with no follow up or questions to answer.
3) Taping up a previously used freezer or turning it into a sideboard without a regular visitor or family member noticing (unless it always had a cloth over it. Who does that though?).

 

[Laughing]

To my mind there are a number of challenges to storing a dead body in a freezer.
1) Heaving it in there. Particularly if you are an older lady. I would think you might need an accomplice.
2) Hiding or explaining away the absence of a murdered or deceased person with no follow up or questions to answer.
3) Taping up a previously used freezer or turning it into a sideboard without a regular visitor or family member noticing (unless it always had a cloth over it. Who does that though?).

Mentioned upthread, apparently this lady.

Tablecloth and a lamp, IIRC.

May be a small chest freezer, would be almost a cube:

image from Walmart.com

5 cubic feet (tee hee), 28.7" long x 20.6" wide x 37.2" high.

Now I have know idea what size freezer is involved here!

JMHO YMMV LRR

 

[carbuff]

One of the descriptions says that size freezer is about the same capacity as a 30-gallon trash can. And we've seen many bodies disposed of in trash cans.

 

[meanmaryjean]

Slightly off-topic: I have friends with LARGE families (9-14 children). As you might guess, a chest freezer or three is a necessity. They are humorously described in terms of how many bodies they could hold.

 

[madfrank]

Thanks for the responses. I'm really interested.

Just a "what if" type question: Why, if they knew the identity of the formerly frozen person already, would they find reason not to make this public?

 

[carbuff]

Thanks for the responses. I'm really interested.

Just a "what if" type question: Why, if they knew the identity of the formerly frozen person already, would they find reason not to make this public?

Well, here's a what-if kind of answer

Presuming it is in fact the elderly relative--if the person died of natural causes, the deceased mom isn't guilty of anything but not properly disposing of a corpse and not reporting a death. But she's dead so there's no point to bringing charges.

If she kept collecting the deceased relative's social security, that would be a crime but again she's dead so they can't pursue it and most likely it would just be a civil action to recover the funds from the estate. It could be messy for the surviving son but again not a criminal matter.

And in cases where there's no criminal matter, most LE agencies won't release information due to privacy considerations.

The other factor is that with COVID, many of the labs that process DNA data have been closed down 8-10 weeks or more, or have been diverted to virus-related testing. It's entirely possible they don't even have a positive identification yet.

We need a crime-reporting journalist to call the precinct to ask followup questions.

 

[meanmaryjean]

Thanks for the responses. I'm really interested.

Just a "what if" type question: Why, if they knew the identity of the formerly frozen person already, would they find reason not to make this public?

Continuing to receive social security or pension payments.

 

[cocomod]

There was a recent case in Utah where the woman’s husband was found in the freezer - with a note exonerating her!

Utah man found dead in a freezer exonerated his wife in a note

 

[Laughing]

Thanks for the responses. I'm really interested.

Just a "what if" type question: Why, if they knew the identity of the formerly frozen person already, would they find reason not to make this public?

Notification of family, desire of family to maintain privacy.

Or, Carbuff tells us that New York releases nothing, ever. In that case, Decedent is on the way to Hart Island.

Warning: Rabbit Hole. Don't claim I didn't warn you:

Hart Island (Bronx) - Wikipedia

The Hart Island Project.

 

[bears10]

Okay, what happened to this case? The floor's open; someone please explain.

why not contact the precinct handling the case and ask if it’s so bothersome? I’m not being snarky, Just offering a suggestion.

 

[Spartygirl]

Well, here's a what-if kind of answer

Presuming it is in fact the elderly relative--if the person died of natural causes, the deceased mom isn't guilty of anything but not properly disposing of a corpse and not reporting a death. But she's dead so there's no point to bringing charges.

If she kept collecting the deceased relative's social security, that would be a crime but again she's dead so they can't pursue it and most likely it would just be a civil action to recover the funds from the estate. It could be messy for the surviving son but again not a criminal matter.

And in cases where there's no criminal matter, most LE agencies won't release information due to privacy considerations.

The other factor is that with COVID, many of the labs that process DNA data have been closed down 8-10 weeks or more, or have been diverted to virus-related testing. It's entirely possible they don't even have a positive identification yet.

We need a crime-reporting journalist to call the precinct to ask followup questions.

BBM
HI ALL !!
I just saw this thread and catching up and yes, OMG...it sent shivers through me when I saw the headline. YIKES

My guess would be what someone above posted, it could have been her mother, put in freezer, keep collecting SS, Pension $$, etc. JMO

I am NOT an investigative reporter, however I am nosy, so I reached out to 2 of the reporters that wrote the article as I would like to know also.

I will keep you all posted if I hear anything back from them.

 

[carbuff]

Oh thank you! You're the greatest!

Maybe it's the start of a new second career?

 

[madfrank]

Okay, so who is the Freezer Occupant going to wind up being? I solicit replies; not legal names, necessarily, but relationships with the owner of their almost final resting place.

Examples:
Former sister-in-law
Beautician who mysteriously went missing after a certain appointment for 38 years.

 

[Spartygirl]

Here is My reply from one of the Reporters- Kerry Burke-NYDailyNews
"

Dear Ms ___

Turns out the body in the freezer is the mother of the woman who recently died in the apartment. When the mother died, her daughter may have hid the body so she could allegedly continue collecting her mothers social security benefits.

Regular readers of the NY Daily News have followed our coverage of the story. Search our site and you’ll get the latest stories.

Best, k
Kerry Burke, NY Daily News

 

[carbuff]

Okay, I am sure I looked on their site and didn't find anything.

 

[Spartygirl]

Okay, I am sure I looked on their site and didn't find anything.

I know I looked all over and could not find any updates so was kind of offended by the snarkiness when told that "Regular" readers have followed the updates
Well, I am not a Regular reader and I did search for updated info, so there LOL
But at least they answered my email