Autopsy to determine gender, time of death for body found near Monte Alto

NEAR ELSA -- Sheriff's deputies said an autopsy will reveal the gender and how long a body had been decomposing before it was discovered by people fishing in an irrigation canal Sunday afternoon.

Authorities said that people fishing discovered a wrapped body weighed down by a cinder block in a canal near the intersection of Farm to Market 88 and Mile 19 North Roads at about 2:35 p.m. Sunday, according to a release from the Hidalgo County Sheriff's Office.

Investigators said the body was "badly decomposed" and partially sunk in the water. An autopsy was ordered to find out how the person died, how long the body had been decomposing, and to find out the person's identity and gender, deputies said.

No identification was found on the body.

"Once sex is determined, that will give us a lead into which missing persons report to follow up on," the sheriff's release reads.

Along with a deadly shooting in Monte Alto on Friday, the Hidalgo County Sheriff's Office has embarked on its the 20th and 21st murder investigations of the year. Of those, 18 have been solved, Sheriff Lupe Treviño said.

"Murders are almost impossible to prevent and the next best thing is solving them so that justice is given to the victim and families," Treviño said in a statement. "Hidalgo County remains a relatively safe place to live and work."