Current:Home > MarketsThey found a head in her fridge. She blamed her husband. Now she's charged in the case. -BeyondProfit Compass
They found a head in her fridge. She blamed her husband. Now she's charged in the case.
View
Date:2025-04-13 06:02:58
A New York City woman previously taken for a psychiatric evaluation after police said they found human remains including a man's head in a taped up refrigerator in her home was due in court Monday after being arrested in connection to the grisly discovery.
Heather Stines, 45, of Brooklyn, is charged with concealment of a human corpse after body parts were discovered at her apartment in the city's in East Flatbush neighborhood in the city's southeast area, a New York City Police Department spokesperson confirmed to USA TODAY on Monday.
According to police, officers responded to the home for a welfare check just after 7 p.m. on Jan 22 and "observed an unconscious and unresponsive unidentified male inside the apartment."
Paramedics pronounced the man dead on scene, police said, and as of Monday, the New York City' medical examiner's office had not yet determined the man's cause of death, a police spokesperson told USA TODAY.
The case also remained active, police said, and remained under investigation.
Human remains found in freezer:Police investigating homicide after human remains found in freezer of Colorado home
Victim identified through fingerprints as Kawsheen Gelzer
Officials confirmed the victim was identified by the medical examiner through fingerprints as Kawsheen Gelzer.
Online records show Gelzer was age 40 when he died and was a registered sex offender.
'Without ventilation and without water':Man opens emergency exit door on plane, walks out onto wing before takeoff
A tip, a welfare check and an arrest
Police have not yet said how long they believe the body had been in the fridge.
Officers initially responded to a tip from someone who said they saw what appeared to be a human head in a black bag in the refrigerator of Stines' home, according to court records and information obtained by the New York Times and the Associated Press.
USA TODAY has requested the police report from the Kings County Criminal Court clerk's office, where online records show it was filed.
When officers visited Stines' home, the Associated Press reported, they found multiple black bags in the refrigerator and freezer full of body parts.
"The refrigerator was taped shut at the time," Joseph E. Kenny, NYPD chief of detectives, said after the find the Times reported and − according to the police report, Stines pleaded with the officers not to open it."
According to police, Stines told detectives the body had been in the fridge "for several months" and belonged to a man who her husband had an argument with over drugs in September, the Times reported. The woman allegedly told investigators her husband killed the man and put his body in their refrigerator.
Two days after the body was found, on Jan. 24, police said they arrested Wells in connection to the finding.
After her arrest, Stine was taken for a psychiatric evaluation at a local hospital then was later booked into jail.
So far no other arrests made in case
As of Monday, police told USA TODAY no other arrests had been made in the case.
The suspect's 79-year-old aunt, Aime Stines, told the Times her niece moved to New York City around eight years ago after her father died and had "a history of drug use but never appeared to be violent."
“There is no way − I couldn’t believe it,” Stines told the Times she recalled after her niece’s arrest. “Heather was always smiling and talking. She has this voice where she talks so fast that I can hardly understand her. She always seemed happy.”
A $50,000 bond and a not guilty plea
Court records show Stines pleaded not guilty to the charge in Brooklyn Criminal Court on Jan. 25 and was set to reappear in court Monday in connection to the case.
Records also show Stines remained in custody on $50,000 bond on Monday.
USA TODAY has reached out to Stines' attorney.
Natalie Neysa Alund is a senior reporter for USA TODAY. Reach her at [email protected] and follow her on X @nataliealund.
veryGood! (2)
Related
- Nevada attorney general revives 2020 fake electors case
- Ariana Grande Shares Touching Tribute to Victoria Monét After 2024 Grammys Win
- Daddy Lipa arrives! Dua Lipa wins the Grammys red carpet bringing her father as a date
- Taylor Swift stirs controversy after alleged Céline Dion snub
- What do we know about the mysterious drones reported flying over New Jersey?
- Step up? Done. Women dominate all aspects of the Grammys this year
- A Tesla plunged into frigid water in Norway. The motorists were rescued by a floating sauna as their car sank.
- Could cash payments ease recessions?
- Trump invites nearly all federal workers to quit now, get paid through September
- Tennessee law denied Allie Phillips an abortion. So she's now running for office
Ranking
- Cincinnati Bengals quarterback Joe Burrow owns a $3 million Batmobile Tumbler
- Are you wearing the wrong bra size? Here’s how to check.
- CNN changes morning show lineup again, adds extra Kasie Hunt hour
- San Francisco considers a measure to screen welfare recipients for addiction
- 'Survivor' 47 finale, part one recap: 2 players were sent home. Who's left in the game?
- Colorado Springs school district plans teacher housing on district property
- Best moments of the 2024 Grammy Awards, from Jay-Z's fiery speech to Joni Mitchell's stunning debut
- Taylor Swift stirs controversy after alleged Céline Dion snub
Recommendation
Trump invites nearly all federal workers to quit now, get paid through September
A 19-year-old man who drowned in lake outside SoFi Stadium was attending concert: Reports
Former WNBA MVP Nneka Ogwumike becomes second big free agent to sign with Seattle Storm
Suspect armed with a knife and hammer who wounded 3 in French train station may have mental health issues, police say
IRS recovers $4.7 billion in back taxes and braces for cuts with Trump and GOP in power
Hosting for Chiefs vs. 49ers? These Customer-Loved Amazon Products Will Clean Your Home Fast
2 women killed days apart in same area in Indianapolis, police say
Black and Latina women helped propel gains for unions in 2023, finds a new study