Body found in NW Indiana ditch ID'd as missing Chicago woman

ROSELAWN, Ind. (AP) - A body found earlier this month in a rural ditch in northwestern Indiana has been identified as a missing Chicago woman, a coroner said.

Investigators used DNA from the remains to identify the body as that of Tawanna A. Miller, 29, said Newton County Coroner Scott McCord.

County officials met with Miller's mother and sister, who tentatively identified her through the pictures of Miller's tattoos. McCord said they offered DNA swabs to help confirm that the remains were of Miller.

The cause and manner of her death are pending toxicology reports. There was no trauma found on Miller's body, but McCord has said police suspect foul play, the Journal & Courier reported.

Miller's body was found June 3 in a Newton County ditch about 60 miles (96 kilometers) north of Lafayette by a member of a mowing crew. Her body had been in that ditch along a rural county road about four to seven days before it was found, McCord said.