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Record Store Owner Discovers Woman's Body Behind Store

MODESTO (CBS13) — Police are now calling a suspicious death in Downtown Modesto a homicide after a woman's body in a driveway Monday morning between a business and a home on 18th and G Streets.

The business owner, Cornell Militaru, discovered the body Monday morning and alerted police.

"I froze for a second. I didn't want to panic," he said.

Militaru was walking his girlfriend to her car behind his record store on G Street around 10:45 a.m. when he saw the body of a nearly naked woman with what appeared to be clothes thrown on top of her and a severe injury to her head.

READ ALSO: Police Investigating Homicide In Downtown Modesto

His girlfriend became distraught at the sight.

"She looked and she panicked and she called 911. I just told her don't go to your car, just let them do that," Militaru said.

Police taped off the area and detectives and crime scene investigators were at the scene for eight hours collecting evidence and talking with potential witnesses.

"The other tenants closed down early; they went to go get sage; they didn't want any bad juju; they didn't know what happened," Militaru said.

So far, police are not releasing many details about the woman, how she died, or how long she may have been there. Militaru describes her as a 40 to 45-year-old caucasian woman.

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He believes the woman showed up overnight because she was not there when he left work the previous night.

He hopes a nearby medical office captured some clues on its surveillance camera.

Police are asking anyone with information about the homicide to contact them.

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