HOLLYWOOD, Fla. – A construction worker made a disturbing find in Hollywood Monday morning, according to police.
The worker, 21-year-old David Vazquez, was working on a building in the area of South Federal Highway and Rodman Street and called police at around 8 a.m. to report that he found a dead baby inside of a dumpster, police said.
“When I opened the bag, I saw it was the baby, but it had already died,” Vazquez told Local 10 News in Spanish. “I smelled a strong odor and wanted to see it.”
Workers were repairing the roof of the building, the Rodman Condominiums, when Vazquez made the gruesome discovery.
It’s not yet clear if police have identified the baby or any suspects who might have put him or her inside the trash.
Neighbors were left in disbelief.
“It’s unbelievable,” resident Roger Cote said. “If people don’t want a baby, they could have gave it up to the firemen and or leave it at the hospital.”
Meanwhile, resident Eugene Yakymiw called the discovery “crazy.”
“This is absolutely insane,” he said.
Hollywood police said homicide detectives are investigating and are specifically looking for anyone who might have footage that could help them locate a suspect.
“If you live near this area, this is the 1700 block of Rodman Street in the city of Hollywood, and you have a Ring camera and you believe that you have some kind of footage on your Ring camera or on your doorbell camera, please don’t hesitate to call us,” Officer Christian Lata, a Hollywood Police Department spokesperson, said.
Lata also made a specific plea to Tesla drivers.
“These vehicles have 24/7 surveillance around their cars,” he said. “If you live around the area and you have one of those vehicles that are constantly recording to take a second, look at your vehicle, see if you have anything that would be useful to us.”
Police asked anyone with information to call them at 954-764-4357 or Broward Crime Stoppers at 954-493-8477.
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This is a developing story. Stay with Local 10 News and Local10.com for updates.