UPDATED Thursday, October 4, 2012 --- 2:36 p.m.
SPARTA, Wis. (AP) -- Authorities in western Wisconsin have released the name of a woman whose body was found in a burning car last month.
Monroe County Sheriff Pete Quirin says the woman was 33-year-old Karen Koca of New Lisbon.
Quirin says the Wisconsin State Crime Laboratory used DNA analysis to identify Koca. The cause of death has yet to be determined.
The burning car was discovered Sept. 18 north of Norwalk. Investigators have determined the victim was not the owner of the 1998 Pontiac Grand Prix with Minnesota license plates.
Authorities are treating the death as a homicide.
Copyright 2012. The Associated Press.
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Posted: Wednesday, September 19, 2012 --- 8:08p.m.
NORWALK, Wis. (AP) -- Authorities are trying to identify a body found in a burning car in Monroe County.
Firefighters responded to a car fire Tuesday morning near Norwalk. Sheriff Pete Quirin says while firefighters were trying to put out the fire, they discovered a body in the car.
The La Crosse Tribune (http://bit.ly/NDe8eA ) reports the sheriff's office has asked the Wisconsin Crime Lab and state investigators to help identify the victim and the vehicle.
Quirin says the car was burned beyond recognition. He says the car had not been in a crash.
The death is being investigated as suspicious. The sheriff says authorities don't know if it was someone who fell asleep while smoking in the car, or whether it was a suicide or homicide.
Copyright 2012. The Associated Press.
