HOUSTON, Texas (KTRK) — A man is in custody and charged with tampering after allegedly being connected to the death of his girlfriend and hiding her body in Houston this month, according to court documents.

Documents state that Jesus Varela is charged with tampering with a corpse after trying to solicit help from a family member to move the woman’s body.

Varela, who was arrested Saturday, appeared in court on Thursday, where a judge read off the chain of events leading up to his arrest.

Court records stated that on Dec. 6, a Texas Ranger talked with a woman who said someone had killed her friend. That led the Rangers to the 1200 block of Barkley, where records show Varela, his girlfriend, and his nephew lived.

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Records show that Rangers brought in the Houston Police Department, who were able to interview the nephew. The nephew told investigators that Varela had allegedly killed his girlfriend around Dec. 1, and asked him for help to dispose of her body and other evidence.

The nephew admitted that Varela “grabbed him by the shirt and said that he would kill him” if he didn’t help, documents stated.

According to court documents, Varela forced his nephew to help him put the woman’s body in four bags and sealed it inside a barrel, which was driven away by Varela, who allegedly dumped it near the intersection of Highway 249 and Ella.

Court records show that later on, Verala also dumped a mattress where his girlfriend was killed. That mattress was found at an apartment complex at 5050 Yale Street.

Verala was arrested on Saturday with three charges, none of which being murder because a body had not been found.

Then on Thursday, ABC13 learned that HPD found a woman’s body in northwest Houston near a wooded area near Ella Boulevard on Wednesday. The body has not yet been identified.

Both HPD and Verala’s appointed attorney expect additional charges could be filed after the body is identified and the cause of death is determined.

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