Police investigating body found in South L.A. refrigerator

Los Angeles police are investigating the discovery of a man’s body inside a refrigerator in South Los Angeles, authorities said.

About 10 a.m., authorities responded to the 600 block of West 57th Street in Vermont-Slauson after maintenance workers cleaning out an apartment discovered the remains, LAPD Det. Dave Garrido said.

It’s unclear how the man, who lived at the one-bedroom apartment, died. Police said there were no obvious signs of a break in and it’s unclear how long the body was in the apartment. The man is believed to be in his 40s. The investigation is ongoing.

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On Tuesday night, police had shut down a small stretch of West 57th Street between Flower and Hoover as officers and coroner’s investigators moved in and out of the two-story apartment building.

Armida Reyes, a 17-year-old neighbor who grew up a few houses from the crime scene, didn’t know the victim but said the grisly discovery had spooked neighbors.

“I think it was creepy. We never expected something like this to happen on our block,” she said.”Finding him in the refrigerator? That was just scary.”

At this point, police don’t believe the discovery is connected to a body found in a refrigerator in a Sun Valley home in September.

Anyone with information is asked to call the LAPD’s Criminal Gang Homicide Division at (323) 786-5113. Those who wish to remain anonymous can call Crime Stoppers at (800) 222-8477.

This post will be updated as more information becomes available.

For more crime news, follow @nicolesantacruz on Twitter.

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