Detectives sifted through dirt and leaves as they looked for blood, fibres, hair or any other evidence to assist their investigation into the death of Chandra Levy.
The high-profile story occupied headlines in the US after Republican politician Gary Condit admitted to having an affair with Levy before her disappearance –after first lying about it.
The young Californian had served as an intern at the Bureau of Prisons and disappeared without leaving any hint as to her whereabouts on April 30, 2001.
The scandal that emerged after Levy’s disappearance was an issue in the March election campaign in which,
Condit lost his seat.
Law enforcers are revealing little of what they’ve turned up, other than to say the skull they found was not ”pristine” and the bones were scattered.
Tennis shoes, a jogging bra and a sweat shirt were also found in the remote section of a park where the young woman’s skeletal remains were discovered this week.
The police said they do not know whether Levy (24), from California, died where her body was found or someone dumped her there.
Investigators scoured the crime scene – a steep, heavily wooded slope in Rock Creek Park – in their search for evidence that could tell how Levy died, how her body got there and, perhaps, who killed her.
District police added an important piece of forensic evidence with the discovery of a knotted piece of clothing that may have been used to restrain Levy, The Washington Post reported on Saturday, citing law enforcement sources.
Levy’s stretch leggings, found near her remains, were knotted in a way that suggests they might have been used to tie her up, the The Washington Post said. Police refused to confirm the report.
Dr Jonathan Arden, Washington’s medical examiner, has said he probably would not determine the manner of death until next week, when police are expected to have completed their search of the area where the remains were found.
Police are talking to nearby residents and joggers to see if they recall anything unusual on May 1, 2001, when police believe Levy disappeared. They also may re-interview people, including Condit and Ingmar Guandique, convicted of assaulting two female joggers in the same park in the weeks following Levy’s disappearance.
Guandique (20) pleaded guilty in February to assaulting the two women, who told police they were jogging when a man with a knife grabbed them. He is serving a 10-year prison sentence.
Police Chief Charles Ramsey said Guandique said ”nothing to implicate himself” in the Levy case when investigators interviewed him last year.
Condit, 54 and married, denies any involvement in Levy’s disappearance. Police interviewed him four times and repeatedly have said he is not a suspect. – Sapa-AP