AUSTIN -- Police have arrested a man in connection with the homicide of a woman found in a dumpster on Monday.
According to an arrest affidavit, 30-year-old James Albert Grady was arrested Wednesday for murder, a first degree felony.
Police got a call Monday afternoon about a body in a dumpster behind a T-Mobile store at 9209 North Lamar Boulevard. Officers found a suitcase at the bottom of the dumpster with the body of 34-year-old Stephanie Renee Harvey inside. It was later determined that Harvey died of blunt force trauma.
Witnesses came forward and told police that they saw a gray Mitsubishi 4-door car pull into the parking lot just before 6 a.m. The witness said he saw the driver remove a suitcase from the trunk and place it into the dumpster.
Descriptions of the man given by witnesses, surveillance video and Harvey's cell phone records led police to arrest Grady.
Police say Harvey was a prostitute who frequented the area. Grady says he hired her and she stole money and jewelry from him.
Grady's bond has been set at $250,000. This was Austin's second homicide of the year.
