A Slatington man charged with killing his roommate in the basement of his home received disturbing cellphone messages from the victim before he was killed, according to state troopers.

The messages weren’t detailed during a preliminary hearing for Joshua Douglas Moser Friday morning at the Lehigh County Courthouse.

Moser, 34, has been charged with homicide after he admitted to killing a 37-year-old David Hittinger in the basement of his residence, dismembering his body and depositing pieces in several locations.

The charges against Moser of homicide, abuse of a corpse and tampering with evidence were held for court by District Judge Rashid Santiago. Bail had been denied.

Moser is scheduled to have a formal arraignment Aug. 8 in the Lehigh County Courthouse.

In May, Moser was arraigned on a first-degree felony charge for criminal homicide, and two misdemeanor charges of abuse of corpse, and tampering with physical evidence.

According to Lehigh County District Attorney Gavin Holihan and the affidavit of probable cause filed by Troopers John Snyder and Taylor Dietrich of the Pennsylvania State Police, Troop M, Bethlehem barracks, the investigation discovered the following:

At about 1:30 p.m. May 13, state police at Bethlehem were alerted to a person missing under suspicious circumstances. Holihan said a friend of Hittinger reported that the man had not been heard from since around 7 p.m. May 11. The two were supposed to meet for Hittinger’s birthday, but failed to do so. Hittinger was seen at his residence at 699 W. Franklin St. in Slatington.

During the course of the investigation, troopers learned that Moser had recently allowed Hittinger to move into 699 W. Franklin St. with him.

After getting a search warrant for the residence on May 14, troopers found a large quantity blood in the basement where Hittinger was staying. Troopers said it appeared that the basement had been hastily staged to conceal the blood.

On May 15, law enforcement obtained a second search warrant and found a saw, box cutter, bloody clothing and more evidence.

Meanwhile, Moser had been taken into custody in Monroe County on a parole violation. He is being held at the Lehigh County prison. Bail has been denied due to the nature of the charges.

At 5:18 p.m. May 15, Pennsylvania State Police from the Stroudsburg barracks interviewed Moser, who according to the affidavit said he strangled Hittinger and struck him in the head with a hammer, killing him in the basement of his Franklin Street residence.

Moser said he dismembered Hittinger’s body at the residence and discarded the body parts in trash bags in three locations in Slatington and Washington Township.

Based on information provided by Moser, the three locations were searched and dismembered body parts were discovered.

Holihan said the body parts were found in Fairview Cemetery, along a side trail of the D&L Trail, and in a small quarry pond off Welshtown Road, all in Slatington. Holihan did not confirm that all body parts have been found.

A fingerprint was recovered from a dismembered hand, analyzed by the Pennsylvania State Police, Bethlehem Regional Laboratory, and identified it as belonging to Hittinger.

An autopsy was performed on May 17 to determine the cause of death.

Officials did not release a motive.

Holihan said the investigation was handled quickly and involved a large number of men and women from many resources. These include Pennsylvania State Police units from Troop M (SERT, Drone Team, Marine Unit, Forensic Service Unit, K-9 Unit); Troop N (Stroudsburg, Fern Ridge and Lehighton, and Vice); Slatington Police Department, Slatington Fire Department, Whitehall Township Fire Department Dive Team, Lehigh County District Attorney’s Office (including the county’s Drug Task Force, Homicide Task Force, and Regional Intelligence and Investigation Center), Monroe County District Attorney’s Office, Carbon County District Attorney’s Office, and the Lehigh County Coroner’s Office.

Moser previously plead guilty to homicide by vehicle in a February 2016 drunken driving crash that killed 24-year-old Nicole Gruber in Washington Township. Another man who was a passenger in the car suffered serious injuries.

Moser was sentenced to a three-year minimum term in that case.