Autopsy Performed On Missing OC Woman Shows No Obvious Signs Of Trauma
MISSION VIEJO (CBSLA.com) — An autopsy was performed Wednesday on a decomposed body found in the Cleveland National Forest.
A group of biologists working for Caltrans discovered the body Monday night in a creek bed, located one mile east of the San Juan Capistrano Fire/Ranger Station on the Ortega Highway near Hot Springs Road, according to the Orange County Sheriff's Department.
Investigators identified 27-year-old Erica Alonso, a Laguna Hills woman who disappeared in February, as the victim.
"We don't know how she ended up there. We don't know how long the body was there," Lt. Jeff Hallock said.
(credit: CBS)
Alonso was reportedly last seen Feb. 15 after leaving her boyfriend's home in Irvine.
"We look at every body. Obviously he was the last person to have seen her alive," Lt. Hallock said.
Her car was discovered about a mile away from her house a month after she was reported missing.
Alonso's family had offered a $5,000 reward for information regarding her whereabouts.
The autopsy revealed there were no obvious signs of trauma to the body. Toxicology tests are being performed as the cause of her death remains undetermined.
