Ill. Man Charged with Concealing Missing Woman's Death After Keeping Her Body in Storage Container: Police

Jose Luis Mendoza-Gonzalez, 52, of Waukegan, Ill. has been charged with concealment of a death, abuse of a corpse and obstructing justice, per the Waukegan Police Department.

Mendoza-Gonzalez was charged after the WPD allegedly discovered the body of Megan Bos, 37, in a container in his yard in Waukegan. Bos was previously reported missing from Antioch, Ill., on March 9. Her body allegedly remained in the storage container for nearly two months.

Mendoza-Gonzalez appeared in court for the first time on Saturday, April 12, per ABC 7 Chicago.

Lake County Judge Randie Bruno, who authorized the search warrant and called the offense “very serious,” released Mendoza-Gonzalez from custody following his court appearance. He was placed on Level 4 pre-trial services monitoring as he doesn’t have a prior criminal history, per Lake & McHenry County Scanner.

Police questioned Mendoza-Gonzalez at a local Waukegan business on Thursday, April 10. He allegedly had frequent contact with Bos before her death, per ABC 7 Chicago. He later told police that he did not want to be arrested at the store, without specifying why. Mendoza-Gonzalez initially told authorities that Bos had come to his home on Feb. 19, but that she left after her visit, police said. He spoke to authorities in Spanish, with the help of a translator.

Mendoza-Gonzalez claimed under interrogation that Bos overdosed on a mystery drug that she snorted in his home on Feb. 19 before asking to go sit in his basement, NBC 5 Chicago reports. After returning from fixing a leaking pipe upstairs, Mendoza-Gonzalez told police he found Bos dead. Fearing he would get in trouble, he allegedly concealed her body in his basement for days before moving her to a storage container in the yard.

Mendoza-Gonzalez also allegedly claimed to have destroyed her phone after she died. The Lake County Coroner’s Office conducted an autopsy on Bos’ body on Friday, April 11, and did not find signs of struggle or trauma. However, the police are conducting further testing, including a toxicology report, and the investigation remains ongoing.

PEOPLE reached out to the Waukegan Police Department and the Lake County State’s Attorney’s Office for further comment.