Missing man believed murdered and dismembered by roommate

A Pennsylvania man was charged Saturday with murder in connection with the death and dismemberment of his roommate, who was reported missing on his birthday.

Joshua Moser, 33, is charged with murder, abuse of a corpse and tampering/fabricating evidence after the remains of 37-year-old David Hittinger were discovered on a trail and in a cemetery and quarry. Lehigh County District Attorney Gavin Holihan made the announcement Friday.

According to Holihan, Hittinger was reported missing on Monday after he had not been heard from since the night of May 11. The person who reported Hittinger missing had planned to meet him on his birthday and became concerned after not hearing from him, Holihan said. .

Hittinger was last seen at Moser’s home, according to Holihan. He had recently moved in with Moser.

Authorities discovered Hittinger’s dismembered body parts in trash bags at a local cemetery on Wednesday, Holihan said. Police found more body parts the next day along a trail and in a small quarry nearby, he said.

The medical examiner determined Hittinger’s cause of death was homicide, although the autopsy is still ongoing, Holihan said.

Caydence Waterhouse, Moser’s neighbor, told ABC affiliate WPVI that she heard screams coming from the house on May 12, a day before Hittinger was reported missing.

‘It was Jos. He said, ‘Take the F out of here, you don’t belong here,'” Waterhouse told the outlet. “But I didn’t hear anyone talk to him.”

Authorities searched Moser’s home Tuesday and collected evidence, including blood and hair, Holihan said. The prosecutor alleged that an “attempt was made to hide the blood in the basement” of Moser’s home, and a second search of Moser’s home turned up a saw, a box cutter, and more clothing with blood on it.

State police say Moser confessed to choking Hittinger and hitting him in the head with a hammer, according to WPVI.

Holihan did not provide a motive for the alleged killing, but said there appears to have been “some sort of disagreement that would lead to Mr. Hittinger’s death in such a manner.”

Moser was taken into custody that same day on an unrelated charge that Holihan did not specify, but is now being held without bail.