The Office of the Lake County Coroner in Indiana released the preliminary cause of death for Ariana Taylor, the missing Chicago-area mother whose remains were found in a ditch Wednesday morning.
The coroner's office findings were consistent with trauma from a motor vehicle accident complicated with drowning, officials said in a release.
The manner of death was ruled an accident, while other results are pending, the office noted.
In a press conference Wednesday, Gary Police Department Cmdr. Jack Hamady said the body was found at around in a "shallow drainage ditch" behind a fence at around 9 a.m. in the of 2100 block of Colorado Street amid a K9 search.
Though her identity was not immediately known, the body was identified at Taylor in subsequent hours, Hamady said.
Hamady noted that there is no current search for suspects and no current threat to the public.
Last week, Taylor's mother reported her missing after the SUV she was believed to have been driving was recovered after having crashed down an embankment along Interstate 65 near the border of Lake Station and Gary.
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Family members said Taylor's wallet, cell phone and keys were missing. They also said some of her bloody clothes were found several feet away from the crash scene, along with a piece of her jewelry.
Gary police searched the area surrounding the scene with dogs and a helicopter, but hadn't found any signs of Taylor. Many others had been helping Taylor's family in their search, including Kevin Collins and his bodyguard company.
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Sunday afternoon, a body was found, but in a strange turn of events, police later said the body was a life-size doll.
Queena Taylor, Ariana's mother, said she learned a body had been discovered Sunday after seeing reports on social media. So, she headed to the location.
"...I wanted to confirm and check and see who it is," she said. "I still believe she’s alive, so that's what I'm going with until further notice.”
At approximately 4:40 p.m., Gary police officers were called to the area of 15th Avenue and Lake Street for what was "believed to be a body in the grassy area," authorities said in a news release. Upon arrival, police stated officers discovered a body, however said identification wasn’t able to be made at the time.
Approximately two hours later, Gary police revealed the body was determined to be a life-size silicone/rubber-type doll once it was uncovered.
Sunday's discovery was made a few miles away from where the vehicle of Taylor was found a week earlier.
Queena Taylor previously told NBC 5 she believes foul play is involved in her daughter’s mysterious disappearance.
