Coolaroo, Melbourne: Major update after woman’s body found in landfill

Homicide detectives have set up a crime scene at a home after finding a woman’s body in a garbage dump.

Detectives believe the woman’s remains were placed in a bin collected from a home in Coolaroo, Melbournein the north, by a garbage truck on Tuesday.

Waste management workers found the body on Wednesday while moving green waste at the Cooper Street landfill in Epping.

A single-storey brick house on Hilgay Street in Coolaroo was cordoned off by forensic teams and detectives on Saturday.

The recycling and waste bins associated with the property were searched, while items on blue tarps were also examined by detectives. Herald Sun reported.

Neighbors interviewed by detectives said an elderly woman lived in the property and had only moved in a few weeks ago.

An autopsy is currently being performed to formally identify the woman.

Detectives also inspected a stone house 100 meters away. The owners of that house have been abroad since last month.

A house has been cordoned off on Hilgay Street in Coolaroo, Melbourne, after a woman’s body was picked up from the suburb by a garbage truck

“A large CCTV surveillance operation is currently underway in the Coolaroo area and police would like to speak to anyone who may have CCTV or dashcam footage, particularly between Sunday 23 June and Tuesday 2 July,” a police statement said.

‘Detectives would also like to speak to people who may have seen suspicious activity in the area around that time.’

Officers also inspected the lawn clippings of the house next door.

Waste management workers found the body while moving green waste at the Cooper Street landfill in Epping on Wednesday

A woman who lives next to the house that was investigated by police, Beatriz Betancur, said the only conversation she had with her neighbor was about the day the trash was taken out.

“That was all we talked about, but she was a normal lady,” Ms. Betancur told the publication.

‘I didn’t see anyone, I think she lived alone.

“It’s terrible, it’s scary. This street is very safe, very quiet, most of these people are old people, like me.”

Police have not confirmed whether the cordoned off house was the location where the garbage was collected.

The woman’s cause of death has not yet been determined.