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Missing Woman's Body Found In Old Refrigerator More Than 5 Years After Disappearance

MARGATE (CBSMiami) – The body of a woman missing for more than five years was recently discovered inside an old refrigerator at a Margate scrap metal business.

According to a heavily redacted Margate police report, the owner of the scrap metal business made the horrifying discovery on March 15 after the refrigerator was delivered for scrap metal processing.

According to the Sun Sentinel, it was the body of Heather Anne Lacey, a 29-year-old mother of two, who disappeared in November 2013 and last seen in Deerfield Beach.

Heather Ann Lacey 2
Heather Anne Lacey (Source: charleyproject.org)

The report says the freezer containing Lacey's body had been in a Hollywood apartment where Jonathan Escarzaga was found dead on Feb. 17, 2019.  After Escarzaga's death, the landlord upgraded the appliances and the old appliances were removed by a Margate company, which sent the freezer containing Heather's remains to the scrap business.

The Sentinel reports that witnesses said Lacey's arms were raised inside the refrigerator as if her hands were pushing against the door and her legs were compressed toward her upper body.

Following her disappearance, family members said she had a history of drug abuse that started after she had a C-section and started using painkillers, as well as cocaine and other narcotics. She was also arrested several times for drug possession and prostitution and served a year in prison for forging a check and identity theft, states the paper.

The death of Jonathan Escarzaga remains a mystery as well. His body was found in his Hollywood apartment after it started to decompose and a neighbor complained about the odor. The medical examiner's office could not determine how Escarzaga died or what caused his death.

Police have not said whether Escarzaga knew Lacey, or what role, if any, he may have had in her death. Also unknown is how long Lacey has been dead, or how long she was hidden inside the freezer.

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