A 15-year-old boy has been found dead inside a freezer at his grandmother’s house in Brazil amid mysterious circumstances.

The body of Jose Eduardo Alves Goncalves Rosa was discovered in the neighbourhood of Vila Adelina in Campo Grande on the afternoon of January 11.

He was found by his cousin, 20-year-old Carlos Magno Goncalves Rodrigues, who was asked by Jose’s brother, Leonardo, to check up on the teen after he failed to show up for work.

Carlos found Jose inside the freezer at his grandmother’s house wearing just his underpants and with no obvious signs of violence.

The freezer was located in the property’s rear garden and was not connected to a power source at the time.

Jose often helped out his 26-year-old brother, a refrigerator technician, with odd jobs. However, he failed to show up for a job on the day he was found.

Leonardo told local media: “I thought it was strange, he’d been missing since early. I called everyone and no one knew anything.”

The house was locked at the time, and Jose’s grandmother was not at home. However, when she was away she would often leave a key in a hidden place, which was known to the teen.

Aware of this fact, Carlos decided to search the property in case Jose was there.

He jumped the wall and found the unconnected freezer in the back garden, along with a trickle of blood dripping into a hole.

He told local media: “It was already smelling bad. I opened the freezer and found him there sitting in just his underpants.”

He called the emergency services who arrived at the scene and confirmed that Jose was dead.

In the garden there were reportedly a number of chairs placed in a circle, suggesting the teen had not been alone, and a hose was also found at the scene, which may have been used to clean up.

A number of plants were also knocked over, suggesting the people Jose was with had jumped the wall to escape.

Leonardo recalled that his brother asked him for a hookah to smoke shisha with some friends. “I just don’t know with who,” he told local media.

The police seized a notebook, a mobile phone, and a knife from the scene to assist with their investigation.

Jose did not have a criminal record and was known to be a calm and happy person.

His death was the latest in a string of tragedies for the family. His grandfather passed away a month earlier and his uncle died the previous week.

Leonardo described Jose as “a person who didn’t have problems, he didn’t have beef with anyone, everyone liked him”.

The police are currently investigating the teen’s death.