A body found in a freezer last month may have been that of a woman who has been missing or dead for up to nine years, police in the US have said.

The body was discovered by “out-of-town” family members who were visiting a residence in San Diego, Sky News’s US partner network NBC News reported.

Police have now named the dead woman as 81-year-old Mary Margaret Haxby-Jones.

Her cause of death is yet to be determined, with officers saying there was “no obvious traumatic injury to the body”.

But the case is being investigated as a “suspicious death”.

The San Diego police homicide unit has been called in to investigate due to the unusual location of the body.

“Based on the investigation to this point, detectives believe it is possible that Ms Haxby-Jones may have been missing or dead for up to nine years,” police said.

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No missing person’s report was filed, but she is believed to have lived at the residence “at some point prior to the discovery of her body,” they added.

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Last month, police said the “out-of-town” family members called local authorities after finding the body in the running freezer at the address on Zion Avenue.

The family members are related to someone who currently lives in the home.

They are not related to Ms Haxby-Jones, police said.

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