DETAILS have emerged about the victim of a brutal murder-suicide in a Brisbane unit.

Mayang Prasetyo, believed to be a transgender prostitute, is believed to have been killed, dismembered and “cooked” by her chef boyfriend Marcus Peter Volke, 28, in their Teneriffe unit.

Police discovered a body part in a pot on the stove of his Commercial Rd apartment on Saturday night.

Police had been called to Teneriffe after concerns were raised over the occupants and an “eye-watering” smell in the unit block.

media_camera Friends have paid tribute to “happy, cheerful” Mayang Prasetyo.

Volke fled the unit when officers arrived. His body was found shortly after in nearby Dath St with a fatal self-inflicted throat wound.

Friends of Ms Prasetyo have paid tribute to the “happy, cheerful” woman online.

It is not known when she died.

Residents reported hearing loud arguments coming from the apartment up to a week ago, and a foul smell since Thursday.

Channel 10 reported on Monday that a tradie had been called to the unit days before the grisly discovery, after a power outtage, and said the carpet “squelched” beneath his feet as he walked through the apartment.

It is believed human remains were found in a large pot on the stove and in garbage bags.

Officers were seen carrying shovels into the apartment on Monday. Large barrels were wheeled into the unit on Sunday.

EARLIER

A CHEF who was discovered cooking parts of his girlfriend’s dismembered body seemed “happy” and “normal” days before the killing.

Marcus Peter Volke, 28, cut his own throat while fleeing police who had been called to his high-end Teneriffe apartment building to investigate a putrid smell.

INSIDE THE BUILDING: The scene of a suburban horror story

Officers discovered a body part — believed to belong to his Indonesian girlfriend — in a pot on the stove as well as other parts of her mutilated body in the ground-floor apartment.

Volke fled his unit on foot and his body was later found in a nearby street with a fatal self-inflicted throat wound.

“He was happy and he was coming home for Christmas, everything was normal,’’ she said.

She said her son had only recently returned to Australia from working internationally aboard boats.

The couple had met on international cruise ships when they both worked as chefs.

“He’d been on a ship, going from one country to another,” Mrs Volke said. “They hadn’t been in Brisbane for very long, only a few months. They were starting to get settled. I don’t know what was going on — we hadn’t seen him for a year-and-a-half.”

She said she was in shock about what had happened to her third child with husband Peter.

“It still doesn’t feel real,” she said. “He was one of these kids that would do anything for you, he had a feel for nature.”

Mrs Volke said the police told her on Sunday they still had to formally identify the body with dental records and an autopsy.

Today, drums used for medical waste have been rolled out of the apartment.

Forensic officers remained at the scene and a medical waste truck removed large plastic bins of material with the help of uniformed officers.

media_camera Police remove hazardous material from an apartment at Commercial Rd Teneriffe, where police are investigating a murder-suicide. Pic Jono Searle

Police ruled out providing any further details after an initial briefing to reporters at the weekend.

“It’s just an ongoing methodical investigation at this stage,” a police spokesman said.

Police have not confirmed reports body parts were found cooking on the stove.

A resident of the Teneriffe complex, Courtney Reichart, said an increasingly foul smell had been coming from the unit since Wednesday and by the weekend it made her eyes water.

“It was like as if somebody had put out some dog food or some red meat out in the sun and left it for a few days,” she told reporters outside the building on Monday.

Ms Reichart said she and her husband, along with others in the complex, were stunned by what had gone on.

“That poor girl has sat there for however many days and we’ve just been walking past, living our lives, and thinking ‘what’s that smell?’”

media_camera Courtney Reichart lived in the apartment block where the woman’s body was being cooked on a stove. Pic Jono Searle

Ms Reichart said she had met the couple briefly, but the building had only been open for eight weeks and residents were still moving in.

“They seemed quite friendly, they didn’t seem like they had any issues, but it was a quick meet and greet,” she said.

Another resident, who didn’t want to be named, told reporters she’d seen the woman who lived in the apartment and had noticed how “stunning” she was.

Police arrived at newly-opened apartment building DoubleOne 3 on Commercial Rd on Saturday night after the on-site manager called to report a strange smell.

Residents said the stench was first noticed on Thursday and had gradually become worse. It is understood officers knocked on the door of one ground floor apartment where Volke had been living with his girlfriend.

He answered before fleeing through a window.

Blood could be seen on a handrail where he leapt into an alleyway before taking off down the street. He ran for a block and turned on to nearby Dath St, where he hid in an industrial bin.

It is understood he managed to evade police but was soon found after officers set up a perimeter.

“We were sitting on the couch watching a movie and heard what we thought was a fight going on,” Dath St resident Ryan Lane said.

“I came outside and there were probably about 10 or so cop cars out here and they wheeled one of the wheelie bins outside. I saw them, there were probably about 15 cops with their guns drawn and then they tipped the bin over and the guy came rolling out covered in blood.”

Resident Teagan Downey, 22, described the smell as eye-watering.

“(On Saturday) about lunchtime, it got so bad in the foyer, it was so strong it would make your eyes water,” she said. “That’s when the on-site manager alerted police. It was a really distinct smell.”

Some thought the smell was a fault with the sewerage. DoubleOne 3 had only been open a matter of weeks. Others thought young professionals with their apartment-confined dogs might have been the cause.

Residents looked on in alarm on Sunday as officers in forensic suits carried heavy plastic tubs into the building. Forensic officers were hosed off by firefighters after spending time in the apartment. An RSPCA officer was called to collect several pug dogs, believed to be the couple’s pets.

Detective Inspector Tom Armitt said police went to the apartment complex because they were “concerned about the welfare of some occupants” who had “not been seen for some time”.

“Upon attendance there, we’ve had cause to commence an investigation in relation to a murder suicide,” he said. “Any persons who were at the units or around the area that noticed anything suspicious, please contact police.”

Readers seeking support and information about suicide prevention can contact Lifeline on 13 11 14 or Suicide Call Back Service 1300 659 467.