Man accused of dumping man's body in trash can says another man paid him to do it

AUSTIN, Texas - New details have been released in the investigation into how a man's body ended up in a trash can in South Austin in late May.

68-year-old Joseph George has been charged with first-degree murder in the death of 59-year-old Duc Van Vo.

Timeline:

Court paperwork outlines the events of May 30 and the investigation that followed.

Austin police initially responded to a welfare check in the 4400 block of Pack Saddle Pass regarding a body covered in blood found inside a trash can. An Austin Resource Recovery truck had been scheduled to make a pick-up at that location, but when the driver began to load the can into the truck, he saw blood and then a body fell out of the can.

EMS responded and found that the body had "obvious signs of decomposition" and the man, later identified as Vo, was pronounced dead.

Police found the crime scene across the street in the 2200 block of Western Trails Boulevard, where they spotted dried blood on the sidewalk and drag marks that appeared to have come from a trash can in a gravel area. Detectives also found a drainage grate several feet away that appeared to have blood on it.

What they didn't find were any personal belongings of Vo's, despite that spot being where he was known to sleep.

Detectives used video surveillance footage from nearby and CapMetro to learn that a "white man with a thin build" had carried a trash bag through the property and loaded it into the trash can around 5 a.m. on May 29. Police also learned of a 911 call from earlier that night, where someone reported a homeless person moaning and another placing a trash can beside him, as well as a clanking noise. 

More video from the area showed a person in a striped shirt and blue jeans with a "distinct gait" walking from one side of Pack Saddle to the other, then back again with a trash can, then across a parking lot with the trash can. Surveillance video obtained on June 1 showed an older white man with a striped shirt and blue jeans, matching the description of the man seen moving the trash can.

Officers with APD and the Pct. 3 Constable's Office found and detained the man in the 4400 block of Menchaca Road on June 2, just about two blocks away from the murder scene. The man, identified as George, was found wearing the same clothing as seen in the videos.

When police interviewed George, he allegedly said he had had an interaction with Vo earlier in the night. He said Vo had walked up to him while he was sleeping under a bridge and began talking to him. During their conversation, George said Vo was tapping his leg with a knife and at one point had pointed it at George's face.

Vo also burned a piece of plastic in his hand with a lighter and did not stop when asked by an unknown Black male. The man then punched Vo.

George claimed that an hour after the three separated, the man came back and asked him for help and George was led to the murder scene.

Police say George confirmed moving the trash can, grabbing a metal bar and taking it to the crime scene. He also said he put trash bags in the can to cover the body. George said he used water from a nearby business to wash off the blood and that the man was actually the killer and paid him $50 to load Vo into the trash can, court paperwork says.

Police say that no one else was seen on video or by witnesses with George or with the trash can.

What's next:

George is currently in the Travis County Jail on three charges: first-degree murder, second-degree felony tampering/fabricating physical evidence with intent to impair a human corpse, and an unrelated criminal trespass misdemeanor from January.

His bond has been set at a collective $270,000.

He is due in court on July 1.

Crime and Public SafetySouth Austin