Autopsy results could reveal details about remains

ALAMO - Autopsy results expected today could reveal more about a set of badly decomposed human remains found south of the city last week.

A farm hand discovered a skull just after 4 p.m. Wednesday in a field near the intersection of Farm-to-Market Road 907 and Balli Road. The next day, Hidalgo County sheriff's deputies found a decaying torso about 400 yards away.

The advanced state of decomposition has hindered efforts to determine the man's identity or how he died, Sheriff Lupe Treviño said.

Investigators believe the body had been out in the field for at least three to four weeks before its discovery.

"At this point, we have absolutely nothing," the sheriff said. "It could be a murder. It could be an accident. It could be an illegal immigrant that just expired out in the field."

Preliminary autopsy results are expected to provide some indication of the cause of the man's death. But identifying the corpse could take weeks, Treviño said.

Man drowns in Rio Grande

LA JOYA - On Monday, Hidalgo County sheriff's deputies discovered the body of a man drowned in the Rio Grande just south of La Joya.

Although autopsy results are pending, investigators believe the death was accidental, Sheriff Lupe Treviño said.

Deputies have not yet released the man's identity but said they believe he was a Mexican national based on documents found on the body.

Preliminary autopsy results could be available as soon as today.

Monitor staff writers Ryan Holeywell and Jeremy Roebuck compiled this report.