NYPD: Woman's dismembered remains found in bags

NEW YORK (AP) - A man out walking his dog early Tuesday morning made a gruesome discovery: The dismembered remains of a woman in heavy duty plastic garbage bags, police said.

The first bag was discovered in the Melrose neighborhood of the Bronx at about 5 a.m., when the dog started sniffing at some trash. Inside a duffel bag among the pile of trash, he found a bloodied leg in a plastic bag.

When police arrived, they found three other bags with remains on surrounding blocks. One contained a leg and an arm. In another, a portion of a torso with shoulders. In the third, a head.

Mario Font, a building superintendent, said he saw police open the bag near the pile in front of his building, and the trash bag inside it held a leg. He said he believed it was the right leg, judging from the toes.

Font was disturbed by the scene in a neighborhood he said has improved in recent years. "To chop a person in pieces, it's a horrific crime," he said.

The body is believed to be that of a 45-year-old woman. Her name was not immediately released, and the medical examiner's office was working to determine a cause of death. Police were talking to her son, but no arrests have been made.

Police cordoned off at least four separate locations on the streets surrounding the initial discovery. There were uncollected trash and recycling piles throughout the area, and white sheets covered items near the piles at least two spots.

Witnesses said the sheets were placed shortly before children and parents started walking through the neighborhood to reach a public elementary school.

Police interviewed witnesses and searched for any video that may lead them to a suspect. Font said the surveillance cameras on his corner weren't working. Some witnesses told police an SUV dropped the bags off sometime during the night.

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2/26/2013 11:27:41 AM (GMT -8:00)