A 96-year-old woman was found dead in a freezer, and now her daughter is charged with concealing the death, according to Illinois news reports.
Regina Michalski’s body was found in a garage freezer on Monday, Jan. 30, after the woman’s granddaughter requested a well-being check, reports.
Sabrina Watson said she had thought her grandmother died years go, WGN reported, but on Monday, a “gut feeling” had her convinced something wasn’t right.
“I couldn’t find her,” Watson told the Chicago TV station. “No record of her being buried or a memorial online or anything like that, so I knew her body was somewhere, it was somewhere, and it wasn’t in the ground.”
In a news release, the Chicago Police Department confirmed a 96-year-old woman was found dead at a Chicago home.
Eva Bratcher, 69, “was identified as the offender who concealed the death … and moved the victim’s body after death,” authorities said.
Watson said Bratcher is her estranged mother, according to WBBM.
“It started off with a wellness check and it ended with someone being found in the freezer,” Watson told WLS.
Bratcher, of Chicago, was charged with concealing death/moving a body and possessing a fraudulent ID card, police said. Both charges are felonies.
Authorities have not released a cause of death or said how long Michalski has been dead. An investigation is ongoing.