An investigation has been launched after police found the dismembered and decomposed body of a woman at a house in Philadelphia.
The Philadelphia’s Sheriff’s Office made the gruesome discovery Thursday night (January 16) after serving a robbery warrant at an address in the 2100 block of Porter Street.
The Philadelphia Police Special Victims Unit officers also attended the scene to investigate a possible human trafficking offense involving a missing 18-year-old female who was believed to be at the house.
When officers went into the basement, they found the “badly decomposed” body of a woman, which had been partially dismembered, in a bathtub.
According to the Philadelphia Inquirer, the robbery arrest warrant was for Madison Leidy and issued in July 2018. Leidy was found at the address along with four other people.
All five were taken into custody for questioning. It is not known what charges have been filed against them. The Philadelphia’s Sheriff’s Office and the Philadelphia Police Department have been contacted for comment.
Sheriff Rochelle Bilal told reporters at the scene that investigators have not yet confirmed if the body is that of the 18-year-old suspected human trafficking victim.
“We have a deceased female, possibly that age, but she’s a Jane Doe until she’s been identified,” Bilal said.
Last month, a Philadelphia man was charged with murder after allegedly killing both his grandmothers and then living with their bodies for a short while at an address in Spring, Texas.
Jaryd Ramos, 22, is accused of strangling Regina Gromley, 90, and Barbara Gromley, 59 after becoming “tired of them,” according to police.
He was arrested after the Montgomery County Sheriff’s Office found the body of an unidentified woman at an abandoned church on Westridge Road in Spring on December 8. The investigation led them to the home in Spring where Ramos is said to have been living since July.
During a search of the home, police found Regina Gromley’s body inside a garbage can in the backyard. Ramos later told police he killed the 90-year-old as well as 59-year-old Barbara Gromley before dumping her body at the church.
Both women were believed to have been killed in November.
“The bodies were in the residence for a little while, based on his own confession and statements, then they were moved outside,” Lieutenant Scott Spencer told reporters.
“He had done a lot of research and a lot of careful planning into what he had decided to do with the bodies in order to alleviate some of the smells or problems that can come from a decomposing body,” Spencer added.
“There were indications that there were thoughts or ideas of him doing this prior to the actual date that he said he killed them.”