A Collier Township Public Works employee found a grave in the woods with human remains in it.
Officials say the four-foot deep grave was freshly dug.
The remains were found on undeveloped land owned by a local construction company near Ridge Road in Collier Township.
The employee was clearing Ridge Road of snow Wednesday night when he saw a mattress against the guard rail. He became suspicious and returned to the scene on Thursday morning.
The Allegheny County Medical Examiner was called to site just before noon on Thursday.
Ridge Road runs parallel to Parkway West. Police blocked off the road to all thru traffic. There are only four or five residences on Ridge Road.
The undeveloped site is said to be frequently used as a dumping ground.
Forensics teams are on the scene. Officials have sent for generators and food – an indication the investigation will go on into the evening.
A man from Carnegie is in police custody today, accused of killing another man, dismembering his body and burying the remains in a shallow grave in Collier Township.
Allegheny County police today announced the arrest of James Monroe Baldwin, 22.
Baldwin is charged with homicide and abuse of a corpse for the death of Brendon Martin, 19.
Yesterday morning, a Collier Township Public Works employee discovered the shallow grave in the woods near Ridge Road.
According to police, the worker saw some suspicious activity in the area on Wednesday night and went to check it out the next morning.
When officials arrived, they found five bags buried in a fresh grave. Four of the five bags contained human remains, while the other had clothing, cleaning supplies and other items.
Investigators say a piece of paper inside one of the bags had the address of a home in Carnegie.
When police went to the home, they questioned Baldwin and took him into custody.
Police believe the murder happened in the basement of the home in Carnegie that the men apparently shared with an unidentified woman.
At this point, investigators are not commenting on a motive.
Dayum…that is just nasty-- “dismembering” --now if you are going to bury all pieces together-- why dismember? That is just plain dumb. Making more work for yourself, just to get caught anyhow b/c you left a piece of paper in there w/your address on it :ugh: NOT very bright!
I agree, not a very bright person to leave a slip of paper in the bag with an address on it. He should have burned that and then disposed of the cleaning supplies in a dumpster with public access.
The dismembering thing is a good idea because it makes it much easier to cart a dead body around (a bag or two at a time) and nobody sees anything other than a person carrying something fairly small. Imagine if somebody saw you with the entire body, the police would be there lickity split. I cannot believe that he didn’t travel to a different county to bury the body. That’s just lazy.
The better solution would have been to learn when certain dumpsters (retail stores are good but fast food places are better because nobody digs through them) are emptied by the garbage companies and then place different chunks of the dismembered body in a few all around town. Spreading things out makes it harder for the authorities if they get involved and is less likely to attract attention.
