A dead body found early Thursday at an illegal trash site was the victim of a homicide, police said.

The body was found Thursday morning at the dump site in the 4200 block of 48th Avenue North in Birmingham.

The body was found by a person who collects discarded items from the trash pile. The person found the man’s body lying facedown in the pile and called 911.

Coroner’s office personnel believe the man had been shot to death.

Birmingham police are investigating the homicide.