Coroner: Woman's Remains In Indiana County Show Bullet To Head

Indiana County Coroner Mike Baker said skeletal remains found this weekend are from the same body as bones found in December, and are from a woman who was shot to death and dismembered at least three years ago.

In a news release, Baker said the remains were recovered in Mahoning Township Saturday afternoon by investigators and an anthropology team from Mercyhurst University in Erie in a meticulous search of the wooded area just off Leasure Run Road near Rochester Mills.

Baker said the bones are those of a 30- to 40-year-old black woman who was shot in the head three to 10 years ago.

Baker said Saturday's search yielded about 90 percent of the remaining bones.

Baker said the body was dismembered after death and investigators are trying to determine if she was shot in other parts of the body. DNA and dental records will be used to try to identify the woman from various missing persons databases.

Baker would not release specific details of how the remains had been buried or arranged, but he confirmed that the bones were from the same body from which a skull and several other bones were discovered in December.

"There is no question that this individual's death was the result of homicide. Hopefully the information we will gain from examining the new evidence will bring us closer to making a positive identification of the victim. We have a lot of very capable people working on it, and every forensic advantage available will be brought to bear in the case," said Baker.