Cops grill family of woman found dead in trash bag
The 70-year-old woman whose body was found stuffed in a trash bag inside a residence in a luxury Bronx apartment building was from Georgia and staying with relatives who were taken into custody for questioning, police said Friday.
Her body was discovered inside the bag by her daughter-in-law, sources said. The daughter-in-law’s mother is the tenant of record at the apartment, the sources said.
Two men and two women were taken into custody. Police let all but one woman go, arresting Inga Bearden, 53, Friday afternoon. She was charged with concealment of a corpse, which is a felony, police said.
Cops did not say what her relationship was to the woman found in the bag.
Authorities said there were no signs of physical trauma to the body, and police are awaiting autopsy results to determine a cause of death.
One of the residents questioned said the woman may have died from a drug overdose, although cops found no evidence of drugs in the apartment, according to a source.
Cops responding to a 911 call to the Grand Concourse apartment near E. 140th St. in Mott Haven found the woman stuffed in a black garbage bag at 1:47 p.m. Thursday. The four people questioned were also inside the apartment.
Medics pronounced the woman dead at the scene.
It was not immediately clear how long she had been staying there or from where she was visiting.
Building residents said the woman’s death was unsettling.
“It kind of spooked me out because I’m like I don’t even know what’s going on,” said Temi Cruz, 30, who has lived in the building with her toddler son since January. “And it’s just me here with my son. I didn’t hear anything. So it’s kind of scary. Really scary.”
Neighbor Juan Muneton, 41, said he had seen the woman before.
“I saw her once,” he said. “My neighbor told me it was her. She lives on the third floor. She said ‘hi, have a good day,’ that’s it. She seemed normal, she seemed OK.”
He said activity in the building often attracts police.
“This building is supposed to be a luxury building but it’s not,” he said. “The amenities are not even finished.”
Listed amenities include a fitness center, yoga studio, golf simulator and screening room.