Decomposing body found in car in Westlake district

WESTLAKE DISTRICT, LOS ANGELES (KABC) -- Police are investigating a mysterious death in the Westlake district, where a decomposing body was found in a car that was apparently dropped off by a tow truck in the middle of the street.

Area resident Marek Lewinski captured what appeared to be a tow truck on surveillance video, dropping off the vehicle in the middle of Westlake Avenue near Maryland Street at 3 p.m. Monday. In the video, the truck stops for less than a minute before taking off.

Lewinski said it took nearly 12 hours before the man's body was found in the car.

"Hours goes by, the car is still there, and then next thing, 3 o'clock in the morning, I hear the police," Lewinski said.

According to police, the body appeared to have been in the car for a while and was decomposed. An Uber sticker was seen on the vehicle's window.

"I thought it was just somebody making a delivery," said Carey Campbell, an area resident. Another resident said she saw the car around 6 p.m. Monday upon returning from work.

It's unclear when or how the person died. Police are investigating all circumstances, though they said there were no obvious signs of trauma on the body.

The coroner's office identified the person in the car as 39-year-old Federico Dibartolo. The autopsy is pending.