A U.S. man has been charged with dismembering the body of a woman and eating part of her corpse, officials said Tuesday.

    Gregory Hale, 37, was arrested at his home in Tennessee, the United States, on Sunday and is charged with premeditated first-degree murder and abuse of a corpse, Coffee County District Attorney Mickey Layne said.

    Hale confessed to killing the woman, according to the arrest warrant, which identified the woman as Lisa Marie Hyder.

    Hale told authorities he beheaded Hyder and cut off her hands and feet and placed the body parts in plastic buckets, according to the warrant. It says Hale buried the torso in a burn pile at the residence.

    Hale also admitted to “eating part of the victim,” according to the warrant.

    Layne said a neighbor told police he’d had a conversation with Hale and had reason to believe a murder had been committed.

    Hale is being held in jail on a US$1.5 million bond.

    The Tullahoma News reported that Hyder was 36.

    Coffee County Sheriff Steve Graves told the newspaper that Hyder has an ex-husband and children living in the area.

    Graves said she apparently became acquainted with Hale, but there is no evidence that they were in a relationship or that she was living with him.

    (SD-Agencies)