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STOCKTON, Tooele County — Authorities late Sunday were trying determine the identity of a body found in the desert near Stockton.
Tooele County Attorney Doug Hogan came across the remains about 5 p.m. while checking spring runoff in the area where his family runs a ranch, said Tooele County Sheriff's Lt. Travis Sharmann.
Sharmann wouldn't say whether the body was male or female or how long it might have been there. "Right now we haven't been able to identify anything," he said.
Deputies secured the area and were expected to return Monday morning.
Searches for missing West Valley woman Susan Powell have been conducted in remote areas of Tooele County. Her husband Josh Powell told police he took his two young boys camping there Dec. 7, 2009, the night his wife disappeared. His story has been the subject of intense public scrutiny. Police called him a person of interest in the case.
Sharmann said he was aware that people might be speculating that the remains found Sunday may belong to Susan Powell. He said that was one of the reasons authorities were withholding any details about the body until Monday afternoon.
The discovery of the body is not related to the ongoing search for a Dugway Proving Ground soldier who went missing in Tooele County on May 8, said Wade Mathews, Tooele County Emergency Management spokesman.
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