Virginia police may have found the body of Hannah Graham after the discovery of human remains Saturday in an abandoned property 10 miles from where the University of Virginia student was last seen.

The remains were found in the Walnut Creek Park area in Albemarle County and were sent to Virginia's chief medical examiner in Richmond, where it will be officially identified.

Like Us on Facebook

Charlottesville Police Department Chief Timothy J. Longo told a news briefing that, Graham's parents have already been notified, saying he "made a very difficult phone call" early Saturday.

He promised, however, that until the results of the autopsy report come out, Charlottesville forces will continue with the search.

In a statement, Albemarle County Police Chief Steve Sellers said the search has now turned into a death investigation, but indicated that authorities will not jump to any conclusions, following Saturday's developments.

Officials, meanwhile, canceled a planned wide-ranging search on Sunday. Hundreds of volunteers have so far, joined the series of searches mounted since the teenager disappeared on September 13.

The search for Graham has been running on its fifth week. She was last seen outside a downtown pub in Charlottesville after leaving an off-campus party.

Earlier, a 32-year-old hospital worker named Jesse Leroy Matthew Jr. was arrested in connection with Graham's disappearance.

Authorities said that Matthew, now charged with abduction with intent to defile, was the last person seen with the student. A surveillance footage showed Matthew wrapping one arm around Graham, leading to his arrest on September 24 in Texas.

Further investigations have established a forensic link between Matthew and the disappearance and murder of a Virginia Tech student, Morgan Harrington, in 2009.

Harrington was last spotted in the University of Virginia campus where she allegedly attended a music concert. Her remains were found on a farm in Albemarle County in January 2010, five miles from where Hannah Graham's body was believed to have been found.   

TagsHannah Graham, Hannah Graham search