Frozen remains identified as missing suburban Chicago woman

A body found frozen to the ground on Chicago's southwest side has been identified as a 41-year-old suburban woman who had been missing since October, authorities said.

Carolyn Jean Schranz's badly decomposed remains were found last week, about 100 feet from train tracks just south of the Chicago Sanitary and Ship Canal.

She'd been stabbed to death, according to an autopsy by the Cook County Medical Examiner's office.

Friends and family said Schranz lead a troubled life, frequently using drugs and working as a prostitute. She'd lost custody of her five children.

"She tried so hard to get her life cleaned up," Rebecca Stowers, Schranz's mother, told WLS-TV. "The drugs were stronger than she was."

A telephone message seeking comment was left by The Associated Press at Stower's home in Chicago's south suburbs Thursday.

Chicago Police said the case remained under investigation.

Authorities haven't said when Schranz died or how long her body was left outside.

Stowers said she filed a missing persons report in October and passed out handmade fliers as she tried to search for her daughter. She also said she tried to get news media to help search for the woman, but had no luck.