Cleaning Crew Finds Skeletal Remains Inside Abandoned Canarsie Home
NEW YORK (CBSNewYork) -- Skeletal remains were found inside a Canarsie home that neighbors thought had been abandoned.
Now, the NYPD is investigating whether someone tried to cover up a death, and if so, why?
David Holder was home Wednesday when a cleaning crew made the gruesome discovery inside the rundown house, CBS2's Tony Aiello reported
"There was a lot of police around and a lot of EMTs," Holder said.
They found skeletal remains on a bed under a sheet.
The remains were handed over to the city medical examiner's office, which is working to determine who they belong to and how that person died.
The owner had rented the house to an elderly woman and her son. Police believe the deceased is the tenant, 93-year-old Maria Carbone, from Germany.
"After a while you know, just ceased seeing her you know," Holder said. "We're talking about over a year."
Sources told CBS2 the NYPD is investigating the possibility that Carbone's death was not reported so that someone could collect her benefit payments.
She and her son, Rudolph, moved to the Canarsie section of Brooklyn about three years ago. Before that, they lived for a time in a homeless shelter near Times Square.
"He was a quiet guy, he stayed to himself, he didn't really interact with too many people," a shelter resident said of the son. "She was basically the same, she was quiet, laid back," he said of the mother.
Neighbors said it's a disturbing situation and they hope the NYPD can provide some answers.
"That's kind of sad to have somebody dead in there and nobody reported it," Holder said.
The homeowner told police she cleaned out the house after assuming the tenants skipped out. They owed more than 20 months of back rent.