The RCMP’s Major Crimes Unit is investigating after a body was discovered in a ditch in Strathcona County on Thursday.
“Circumstances surrounding the death of the male appeared to be suspicious,” police said in a news release late in the afternoon.
The RCMP did not say how old the male was or if he was an adult.
“The Strathcona County RCMP responded this morning at 8:34 to a 911 complaint of a deceased male on a rural property,” police said. “An autopsy is scheduled for tomorrow at the Office of the Chief Medical Examiner in Edmonton.”
Police said they expected to provide an update once the autopsy was complete.
RCMP officers could be seen laying evidence markers in a ditch on Thursday afternoon. A Global News crew at the scene saw a body pulled from a line of trees planted right beside the road, before it was carried away on a stretcher.
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The scene is located just north of Highway 14 on Range Road 231 just south of Sherwood Park. Witnesses told Global News the road had been blocked off since late morning.
Late Thursday afternoon, a flatbed truck arrived at the scene. It could be seen backing into the treed area where the body was found. It later re-emerged carrying a black pickup truck.
Police officers could be seen conducting a grid search of the ditch down the road from where the body was found.
Anyone with information is asked to contact the Strathcona County RCMP detachment at 780-467-7749. Tips can also be submitted to Crime Stoppers by phone at 1-800-222-8477 or online.
View photos below: View photos from the scene in Strathcona County in the gallery below.
–With files from Global News’ Sarah Kraus