Human Remains, Some Deep Fried, Found in a U-Haul and in Trash Bags Behind a Strip Mall.

A Philadelphia man has been arrested after authorities say he allegedly killed and dismembered another person then hid their body parts.

The days long ordeal began last Wednesday when friends of Peter Gerold, who hadn't "heard from him in some time", asked police to do a wellness check on him. Gerold, 70, owned a massage therapy company called "Kneading You Therapy", and hadn't been seen by his friends or neighbors. Surveillance recording equipment had been removed from Gerold's house and there was no sign of him in his residence.

With Gerold no where to be found Philadelphia animal control assisted the police in taking custody of more than 60 exotic pets that were living inside Gerold's home.

The day after the fruitless wellness check, police were called back to Gerold's Sanibel Street home on reports of a burglary. When police arrived the spotted a U-Haul leaving the premises and began to follow it with the intentions of pulling the driver over for questioning.

When they stopped the driver a few miles away from Gerold's home, the driver got out of the truck as police approached and said, “I don’t want anything to do with this, and there’s a body in the back.”

The body parts, were consistent with those of an adult male, were found in trash bags and some of them were reportedly "deep fried".

The Philadelphia District Attorney's Office told FOX 29 Taray Herring faces burglary, tampering with evidence, abuse of corpse, and related charges.

Police sources say they recovered remains from the garage along with items to compare for DNA.

Late Thursday, investigators found more remains and other evidence in a dumpster behind a shopping center along Bustleton Avenue.

The Philadelphia Inquirer said that Herring is a registered sex offender and was arrested last May on charges of burglary, criminal trespass, theft, and other charges. He was released in June and has not yet faced a preliminary hearing. He pleaded guilty to unauthorized use of a motor vehicle in 2019, was convicted of indecent assault and harassment in 2013, and pleaded guilty to other felonies in 2012 and 2001.

Herring has given the authorities no motive as to why he may have murdered Gerold and their relationship to one another is unknown. Gerold, according to his neighbors, was a beloved member of the community and "always quick to help everyone."

We pray that his family gets justice.