Norristown man charged with murder after body found in trash can along Schuylkill River Trail

Norristown man charged with murder after body found in trash can along Schuylkill River Trail

A man living unhoused in Norristown has been charged with first-degree murder after another man’s body was discovered stuffed inside a trash can near the Schuylkill River Trail, Montgomery County prosecutors announced Saturday.

MONTGOMERY COUNTY, Pa. - A man living unhoused in Norristown has been charged with first-degree murder after another man’s body was discovered stuffed inside a trash can near the Schuylkill River Trail, Montgomery County prosecutors announced Saturday.

What we know:

Police were called to the area off the trail around 7 p.m. Monday, Nov. 10, after a passerby noticed a trash can in the brush and reported a foul odor. The citizen opened the lid and saw what appeared to be a human leg, prompting a 911 call.

Responding Norristown officers confirmed the discovery and noted bicycle parts scattered nearby. The victim was later identified as Oscar Traviezo-Tercero, 44, of Norristown.

An autopsy conducted the next day by Dr. Ian Hood with the Montgomery County Coroner’s Office determined that Traviezo-Tercero died from blunt force trauma to the head and ruled the death a homicide.

Felix Santos-Colon Jr., 46 (Photo: Montgomery County District Attorney’s Office)

The investigation

A joint investigation by Norristown Police and Montgomery County Detectives revealed that both the victim and the suspect, Felix Santos-Colon Jr., were living unhoused and sleeping at the car wash of Global Gas on Main Street.

Police records show that on Nov. 2, Traviezo-Tercero had called 911 to report trying to protect a young woman, described as Santos-Colon’s girlfriend, though the woman left before police arrived.

Investigators said the last confirmed sighting of Traviezo-Tercero alive was Nov. 4. Surveillance video from the next day, Nov. 5, showed Santos-Colon pulling a large trash can filled with items, including bicycle parts, away from the gas station. Another man on a bicycle was seen helping him push the heavy can up the incline leading to the trail.

Detectives later determined the trash can was the same one containing the victim’s body.

The charges

Santos-Colon was arrested and charged with first-degree murder and related offenses. He was taken to the Montgomery County Correctional Facility to await a preliminary hearing.

District Attorney Kevin R. Steele called the discovery "a disturbing and tragic crime that highlights the challenges faced by the unhoused community."