Sheriff: Homicide ruled in death of illegal immigrant found along Cochise Co. highway

A suspected illegal immigrant found dead along the side of a highway near St. David was the victim of a homicide, authorities said.

The Cochise County Medical Examiner's Office determined the woman, a 33-year-old Mexican national died, within 48 hours of being found Feb. 8 in some brush near milepost 308 on Arizona 80, Cochise County Sheriff's Department spokeswoman Carol Capas said.

The woman, whose identity is not being released until after the Mexican consulate notifies her next of kin, is believed to have been dumped in the area and then dragged into the brush from the side of the road, Capas said.

There was no indication the woman had been traveling on foot at the time of her death, Capas said.

The Cochise County Sheriff's Department is not releasing how the woman died.