AN INTENSIVE investigation has been launched after a decomposed body was found in a Harrogate wood.
Police immediately closed the area, in Bilton Lane, and carried out house-to-house inquiries.
The body is so badly decomposed that its sex and identity are not yet known.
A police spokesman said: "The body was found in secluded woodland by a local man who had been looking for his lost cat. It was about 60 yards from the road.
"It is not yet possible to say if it is a man or a woman, and the cause of death is not known. We are hoping that a post mortem examination being carried out today will tell us how the person died."
Records of people reported missing from home in the area are being studied.
Police said the body, which was found yesterday afternoon, had light coloured Puma socks, Nike trainers, dark Adidas trousers and a long-sleeved fleece top with Green Coast written on it.
Updated: 14:50 Thursday, October 25, 2001
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