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A man stashed his girlfriend's body in a freezer and then moved his lover in to assume her identity, police in the US have said.

Arturo Novoa, 31, and Katrina Layton, 34, were arrested on Sunday after a neighbour made the gruesome discovery.

The body, found in several bags in the freezer, is believed to be that of 28-year-old Shannon Graves who was last seen in February.

It is not yet known how she died.

According to police in Youngstown, Ohio, Layton has been living with Novoa for the past month, using his previous girlfriend's phone, walking her dog and driving her car.

(Image: Youngstown Police Department) (Image: Youngstown Police Department)

Layton and Novoa have been charged with the abuse of a corpse, which was discovered on Saturday by Novoa's landlord's wife.

Once a cause of death is established, they could face further charges.

Novoa had asked his landlord if he could move the freezer down to the landlord's basement because his electricity had been shut off and "he didn't want his freezer full of meat to spoil," the police report said.

The landlord's wife became suspicious after seeing the freezer was padlocked, and decided to break in.

(Image: Youngstown Police Department)

Novoa's former girlfriend, Shannon Graves, was reported missing on June 22, although the last colleagues or family saw her was in February.

Her sister Debbie told WKBN she had missed her birthday, Easter and Father's Day with her family.

Investigators believe it is Graves' body that was stashed in the freezer, but the Cuyahoga County medical examiner has not yet confirmed the corpse's identity and cause of death.

"Basically, Miss Layton moved in with Mr. Novoa and started living her life," Dana Lantz, the prosecutor, said.

"She didn't hold herself out to be Shannon, she just lived her life, using her phone, caring for her dog."

Layton told police she bought the freezer from a Walmart store in early July, and supplied the extension cord to plug it in at Novoa's building.

The couple are in jail and are still to be appointed lawyers, Lantz said.