Human remains found in Renton hotel

Following a tip regarding a missing person, Mercer Island detectives notice ‘foul smell’ coming from one of the hotel rooms on May 5.

A 31-year-old Seattle man has been arrested after police found human remains inside his Renton hotel room.

On the morning of May 5, Mercer Island detectives arrived at a hotel in the 1800 block of East Valley Road in Renton to follow up on a tip regarding the disappearance of a 61-year-old Mercer Island man who had not been seen since April 23.

The detectives noticed a foul odor coming from inside one of the rooms, and requested assistance from the Renton Police Department, according to a May 6 news release from Renton police.

Although officers were able to make phone contact with a man inside the room, the man refused to let officers enter the room to check on the welfare of the occupants.

Renton police then obtained a search warrant to enter the room and once inside, discovered human remains in a plastic tote container in the bathroom, according to the department.

Circumstances surrounding the death are still under investigation and the identity of the remains has not yet been confirmed.

The suspect was booked on unrelated charges pending a determination of the victims cause of death.