Body discovered in freezer at Philadelphia home

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A man is in custody after Philadelphia police made a "gruesome, tragic discovery" of a body inside a freezer with a bag on its head. A bloody knife was found nearby.

Police discovered the body on Friday in a South Philadelphia home, according to city Police Chief Inspector Scott Small. The remains were found face down in a long freezer box in the home’s basement. Police taped off the area and began investigating, turning up a bloody knife near the freezer.

According to NBC10, family members of two men who reportedly lived at the address visited the home on Friday to check on them, but instead found a pool of blood in the basement. They alerted the police.

Mr Small said Philadelphia police arrived at the scene around 6.30am on Friday morning where they found a blood trail leading down into the home’s basement, which ultimately led them to the freezer and the body.

When police looked inside the freezer, they found a body face down with a bag over its head.

First responders declared the individual dead at the scene.

A father and son were known to live at the house, police said. Their family members reportedly went to check on them on Friday evening and found a pool of blood inside the house.

A white SUV police believe belonged to one of them was found parked outside, according to law enforcement.

A "person of interest" was taken into custody sometime before Friday afternoon. Police believe the individual may have some connection to the killing described as a "homicide by stabbing." There were reportedly no signs of forced entry at the home, no ransacking, and it is currently unclear how long the body has been in the freezer.

No charges have been filed and police are pursuing interviews with family members.

According to neighbors who spoke to NBC10, a knife wielding man has allegedly been seen walking around the neighborhood. Mr Small said his department had heard of the knife-wielding man and were following up on the reports.

One man told CBS News he was walking his dog around 3:30 or 4am on Friday when he heard "some screaming out in the street."

Police reportedly believe that the scream came from inside the home, and its source was likely one of the relatives who found the pool of blood in the home during a wellness check.