Remains Are Chandra Levy's
May 22 -- A man walking his dog and searching for turtles in a Washington park today found the corpse of missing government intern Chandra Levy after his pet uncovered the young woman's skull, police said.
Metropolitan Police Chief Charles Ramsey told a news conference this evening that the medical examiner used dental records to determine the remains are those of the 24-year-old woman, who disappeared more than a year ago.
Medical examiners have yet to determine the cause or time of death.
"We have received word from the medical examiner that the remains discovered this morning are in fact Chandra Levy," Ramsey said. "This was based on dental records. The cause of death of death is pending. … We'd like to extend our condolences to the family."
Ramsey said police are treating the case as a death investigation, not a homicide yet.
This morning, the man walking his dog while looking for turtles found the skull after his dog started digging in some leaves in the expansive, heavily wooded park in the Northwest section of the nation's capital, Ramsey said.
The young woman's body had apparently been in the park for a long time, and the bones were not all in one location, Ramsey said. Forensics experts say skeletal remains could yield clues into the how Levy was killed.
"If you find knife marks on the bones, cut marks, those would be indicative of the fact that the person was defending themselves and the manner in which they were killed," said James Starrs of George Washington University Law School.
Ramsey said that remnants of materials consistent with women's clothing were found near the bones, but he declined to elaborate. Sources told ABCNEWS that jogging gear and a portable cassette player were among the items found.
Investigators, Ramsey said, did not know yet whether the area where the remains were found was where Levy died or whether the body had been moved. Investigators, he said, would continue to probe the area.
The remains were found in dense foliage in an area away from commonly used paths, police said. Levy lived in an apartment near Rock Creek Park, and police searched the park shortly after her disappearance last May.
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