decomposition

"The cause of death could not be determined due to the state of decomposition of the bodies," Tersch said.

Part of the research on the bones would also be to see whether the process of decomposition in the soil had cleaned them of any remaining tissue, he added.

The decomposition of her body indicated that she had already been "deceased for several weeks", investigators said.

County Medical Examiner’s Office responded to the scene but couldn’t determine the gender of the person due to the level of decomposition.

Mr Stephen's body was found in an advanced stage of decomposition.