After human remains were found in suitcases in Delray Beach, police ask residents for help

DELRAY BEACH, Fla. — Police are asking for the public's help identifying a homicide victim whose remains were found in three suitcases floating along an inland waterway in southeast Florida on Friday. Officials say the key to catching the victim's killer may be in footage from nearby security cameras.

Delray Beach police Sgt. Casey Kelly asked area residents to review security-camera footage for "unusual" cars or people between July 17 and July 20, keeping an eye out for any that appear to be transporting luggage.

Officers are reviewing footage, but the coverage area is large and the task of doing it alone is “daunting,” Kelly said at a Monday news conference. He asked that members of the public help with the legwork and report what they find to the police department's hotline, where leads have already started pouring in since the discovery of the body.

Police are still working to identify the woman, who they believe was either Caucasian or Latin American, between 35 and 55 years old and about 5-foot-4. She had light brown hair, may have had tattooed eyebrows and was found wearing a floral tank top with a black undershirt and black mid-thigh shorts.

Officers are searching for reports of a missing person who matches the description.

Kelly said it's unclear how long the woman was dead before her body was placed in the water. Her remains were in the early stages of decomposition by the time a construction worker found the first suitcase, its contents spilling out.

Within hours, police received several calls regarding two other suitcases found floating farther south, all containing body parts of the same woman. Kelly declined to say how the woman was killed and if any body parts are missing.

The sergeant said he believes the suitcases were dumped locally but hasn't ruled out the possibility they entered the waterway either north or south of Palm Beach County. Members of the Coast Guard who are helping with the investigation said the current could have carried them in either direction, he said.

Investigators believe the homicide was an isolated incident.