Arizona man stored his deceased father in a freezer for years to protect his home, police say

() – An Arizona man told detectives he put his deceased father’s body in a freezer and moved it around the state for four years, all so he could have a home, police say.

Last week, Joseph Hill was arrested on multiple charges, including hiding a dead body in his backyard and failing to report the death of someone who was not under the care of a health care provider, according to police. has reached out to the Maricopa County Public Defender’s Office for comment.

Bail was set at US$25,000 for his release, according to the final release order in the case. A preliminary hearing is scheduled for Nov. 4.

According to court documents obtained by , Tempe Police received an online tip on October 22 claiming that the 51-year-old Arizona man was keeping his deceased father, Joseph Hill Sr., in a freezer. in the backyard of his residence. The notice described the freezer as being covered with a tarp and blankets.

Police visited Hill at his home the same day, but were prohibited from inspecting the freezer, according to a probable cause statement included in the documents. The defendant claimed that his father had died in Oregon four years earlier.

Detectives on the case attempted to verify Hill Sr.’s death record but were unable to do so, according to the release. Instead, they found records showing that Hill’s father remained the owner of the house and was collecting Social Security benefits through March 2023.

Detectives arrived at Hill’s residence days after obtaining a search warrant, according to the release. Upon explaining the terms of the order, Hill’s “demeanor began to change,” police said, and he revealed that there would be “something in the freezer.”

According to the statement, after being read his Miranda rights, Hill told police that his father had died at the residence four years ago. The next day, he said he had purchased a freezer with the intention of burying his father on land he had purchased in Strawberry, Arizona, according to the documents.

Hill told police he did not want to report Hill Sr.’s death because it was not listed on the deed to the Tempe home and he was afraid of losing his residence, according to the statement.

Hill said that for the past four years, he has lost power intermittently at both his Strawberry home and his Tempe residence due to fires, requiring him to move the freezer back and forth, according to the statement. . On several occasions, Hill also attempted to bury the freezer in the desert, but claimed “there were always people out there,” according to the documents.

The freezer has been in their backyard, without power, for approximately four to six months, according to the release. Detectives removed layers of tarp, blankets, cling film and duct tape to find human skeletal remains in the freezer, as well as a “large amount of biological matter,” according to the documents.

The Maricopa County Medical Examiner’s Office has not yet released an autopsy report determining Hill Sr.’s cause of death.