Authorities said Tuesday a body found last weekend northwest of Durango was that of a stillborn infant.

In a news release, the La Plata County Sheriff’s Office said the body of the female infant was found in a forested area between the 3800 block of County Road 205 and the 3800 block of County Road 203.

Chris Burke, spokesman for the Sheriff’s Office, said a hiker discovered the body around 3 p.m. Saturday.

An autopsy conducted Tuesday morning revealed the child was stillborn after a pathologist noted several indicators, said La Plata County Coroner Jann Smith.

Burke said as of 3 p.m. Tuesday investigators hadn’t identified the parents of the child.

The Sheriff’s Office initially reported the incident was being investigated as a homicide.

Burke said several investigators were working the case, which is no longer considered a homicide investigation. Investigators are seeking anyone with information about who may be related to the infant.

Smith said DNA and hair evidence would be sent to a lab and evaluated in the hopes of finding the parents. She said it appeared the infant had been abandoned for a day or two at most.

Smith said the infant’s cause of death was a birth defect linked to brain damage, and the mother essentially had a miscarriage.

Anyone with more information is asked to call Sheriff’s Investigator Jim Hendricks at 382-7018.

jromeo@durangoherald.com