SoCal Woman Reports Finding Decomposing Body in Trunk of Her Lexus

"(It's) very unusual, I mean, it's a one-of-a-kind," a police sergeant said

Riverside police said a woman who reported finding a body decomposing in the trunk of her Lexus after she noticed the smell in the parking lot of a Southern California Walmart Saturday was not considered a suspect in the case.

The body was identified as 33-year-old Miguel Angel Perez.

The woman called 911 about 4:40 p.m. from the store at 5200 Van Buren Blvd. to report that she had discovered a dead man in her car trunk.

Investigators said the Pomona resident knows the victim and questioned her about her relationship with him and the circumstances surrounding the discovery. Police had earlier considered the woman a person of interest in the case, but later said she was not a suspect.

"(It's) very unusual, I mean, it's a one-of-a-kind," said Riverside Police Sgt. Dave Amador. "We do get bodies in trunks, but when they open it up and say they know them and didn't know they were in there, that's unusual."

Amador said it was unclear how the man died. Investigators could not provide an estimate as to how long the man may have been in the trunk.

"It's hot out so it's hard to say how long it'd been there," Amador said. "It won't take long for a body to decompose in this weather."

Pomona police were called to assist in the investigation because the woman lives with her husband in Pomona. However, Riverside investigators confirmed the victim is not the woman’s husband.

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