VAN BUREN TWP. — Police say a hunter found human remains while walking in the Hoosier National Forest last week.

Last week, Coroner Earl Piper said the exact cause of death remains under investigation, but the cause of death being criminal in nature “is not suspected at this time.”

The hunter reported finding skeletal remains in a wooded area off of Ogala Horse Camp Road just before noon on Oct. 12.

Police and Piper spent hours searching the area to gather the remains to send to an anthropologist.

The identity of the deceased will not be released until confirmed by either DNA or dental records. Piper said he was going to pursue identifying the body using DNA first. Getting those results back can range between 10 days and a couple of months, he said.

The remains were found a quarter of a mile into the Hoosier National Forest from Ogala Horse Camp Road, said Det. Brian Shrader with the Brown County Sheriff’s Department.

Shrader said the remains may be connected to a missing person case out of Bartholomew County. Shrader had been helping the sheriff’s department there with their investigation in the area of Ogala Horse Camp Road.