July 21 (UPI) -- Partial human remains have been found stuffed in a suitcase that had been dumped on a south Texas ranch, authorities said.
Sheriff Javier Salazar of Bexar County, which is home to San Antonio, told reporters during a press conference the remains were found Thursday morning by ranch workers feeding animals in the 18000 block of South Loop 1604 W.
The workers had notified police of their discovery at about 10:45 a.m.
"At this point, we don't know anything about the gender of the remains or how long the remains have been out here, but we are in the process of processing the scene right now," he said.
The luggage was found out in the open by a hill with little to indicate that those responsible had tried to hide it.
"There really wasn't a whole lot of effort to hide the body, other than it was inside a suitcase," he said.
Authorities have applied for a search warrant for the site so they can finish processing the scene, Salazar said, adding that the fire marshal will aid in investigating burn spots found at the location to see if they are related, though he added that fires for burning garbage are not uncommon on ranches.
The owners of the ranch were out of town but cooperating with the investigation, he added.
"The first inclination, of course, is to assume it's a homicide scene. At this point, all we know is that we've got partial human remains out here. And we won't be able to determine cause of death, manner of death or the identity of the victim for some time," he said.
