Police released pictures Monday of a red shirt and black shoes with the hope that the public can help them identify a body found earlier this month in a shallow grave in a wooded area of northern Gaithersburg.
The two articles of clothing are similar to those found on the decomposing body of a man discovered in the 11500 block of Game Preserve Road. On Monday, police announced they are investigating the man’s death as a homicide.
The body was found Nov. 12 by a group of hikers who were traversing the area just west of I-270, near where a utility right-of-way crosses through woods dotted with a few homes.
Police said Monday the body is believed to be that of a Hispanic male, in his late teens to early 20s, who was about 5-foot-6 inches tall. The body could have been in the woods since the late summer, police said.
The shirt is red with black splotches while the shoes are size 8 Aldos.
In August 2015, police also found a body in a shallow grave in nearby Great Seneca Stream Valley Park, which was later identified as 34-year-old Marvin Misael Vargas-Osorio. His body was found just off of the Greenway Trail in the large park. In December, police charged four teens in the killing of Vargas-Osorio that investigators linked to MS-13 gang activity.
Representative shirt and shoes photos released by Montgomery County police Monday.
