PORTLAND, Ore. (KOIN) – The body of a missing woman was found in a Corvallis landfill Tuesday morning, according to Washington County Sheriff’s Office.
Authorities identified the woman as 27-year-old Kaylee Birdzell, who was reported missing on Friday. WCSO said they received information on Sunday that Birdzell’s body was put into the garbage of a local apartment complex near SW 180th in Aloha.
Detectives tracked the trash to Benton County and worked with waste management teams to comb through the landfill and found her body in the Coffin Butte landfill in Corvallis. On Wednesday, officials determined her cause of death as homicide.
“Deputies spent several hours combing through the garbage and were able to locate the body of Ms. Birdzell yesterday morning, said Danny DiPietro, Communications Sergeant for the Washington County Sheriff’s Office.
Authorities identified the suspect as 31-year-old Fabian Albert Hernandez, who police said was in a relationship with Birdzell. WCSO said he was arrested on Sunday for unrelated charges of identity theft and fraudulent use of a credit card.
The sheriff’s office added Hernandez now faces additional charges including second-degree murder and abuse of a corpse.
“As you can imagine, when you hear a story like this, it’s unfathomable. But they made sure that they were as detailed as possible and followed up on the leads, and unfortunately, the information that they heard was true,” DiPietro said.
Authorities ask anyone with information on the case to contact the sheriff’s office at 503-846-2700.