A tip from a Texas man’s ex-wife led police to discover the remains of a woman missing for over a year in his refrigerator, according to investigators.
35-year-old Heather Schwab was reported missing by her mother in June.
She told police that she had not seen her daughter for about a year.
An arrest warrant affidavit said that Schwab’s mother told police her daughter was living with her boyfriend and that he had allegedly been abusive to her.
Months later, on Nov. 3, Schwab’s mother told police that the boyfriend, 42-year-old Chad Stevens, had allegedly said sarcastically that he had killed the woman in a conversation to his daughter, who told his ex-wife.
A detective spoke to one of the man’s ex-girlfriends, who told them he had allegedly assaulted her when she threatened to leave him in January.
On the basis of her accusation, police obtained a search warrant for his home in McKinney.
When they searched Stevens’ home, police discovered a refrigerator wrapped in a “copious” amount of plastic wrap with the remains of a small-statured human being.
They said the refrigerator was found inside a kitchen the sole entrance of which was suspiciously obscured by sheetrock from the rest of the home.
The Collin County Medical Examiner’s Office later identified the remains as belonging to Heather Schwab.
Stevens was arrested and charged with tampering with evidence and assault to a family member causing injury, but police said other charges are being considered pending the outcome of the autopsy.
He was booked at the Collin County Detention Facility with a bond set at $150,000.
According to investigators, Stevens allegedly told police that Schwab had died in July 2022 after slipping in the shower and hitting her head.
He allegedly claimed that, he hid her body in the refrigerator because he didn’t know what to do.
His neighbours said in interviews that Stevens had told them Schwab had died of cancer.
The Collin County Sheriff’s Office indicated that Stevens had been arrested 24 times just in that county for charges that included theft, DWI, assault, and engaging in criminal activity.