Coroner Confirms: Man Butchered Mom, Left Parts in Freezer for a Week

Officials from the coroner's office have confirmed that 42-year-old Miralda Espinoza of Maywood "died of asphyxia and neck compression," reports CBS2. Her dismembered body was left stored in the freezer in the apartment she shared with her son, 19-year-old Moises Meraz-Espinoza. The body parts had been left there for about a week.

On Friday, Meraz-Espinoza arrived at a local police station to tell authorities he was responsible for his mother's death, and told them where he had left her body. Detectives took the freezer from the scene as evidence; during the search blood was spotted "on the floor and in the shower."

Espinoza had not been seen for a week by her neighbors. Relatives say Meraz-Espinoza had been distraught after a breakup. "Meraz-Espinoza was booked on suspicion of murder and is being held without bail, sheriff’s deputies said."