A woman in her 20s was found dead near Benz Road and Copper Hill Drive in Saugus on Monday morning, according to an official with the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department Homicide Bureau.
Lt. Chris Oakley, a lieutenant with the Homicide Bureau, said in a phone interview Monday afternoon that there are early indications it may have been a suicide, but the L.A. County Medical Examiner’s office will determine the cause of death.
Oakley added that after the Medical Examiner rules it, the Homicide Bureau will either close the case or continue an investigation if it is determined to be a homicide.
He said that at least one hiker found the woman and called for help. Homicide detectives and the Medical Examiner responded to the incident and said there was no obvious indication of foul play, as of the publication of this story.
Deputies responded to the area of the Haskell Canyon Open Space around 9:34 a.m. and requested Los Angeles County Fire Department personnel be dispatched to the scene, according to Shirley Miller, spokeswoman for the station.
SCV Sheriff’s Station Search and Rescue also responded to the area and said it was “rugged terrain and difficult to navigate,” Miller added.
Firefighters pronounced the person dead on arrival at 10:08 a.m., according to Miller.
Keith Navarre, spokesman for the Fire Department, said firefighters responded for a psychiatric rescue.
They were dispatched at 9:30 a.m. and arrived nine minutes later to the scene, Navarre said.
There were no transports, he added.
