Headless body discovered behind Georgia Burger King

Authorities have opened an investigation after a Bibb County, Georgia, citizen discovered human remains behind a Macon, Georgia, Burger King restaurant on Monday.

The body, according to various reports, was located in a wooded area near the undisclosed franchise.

What are the details?

According to a report from WGXA-TV, an unnamed passerby was walking in the area and spotted the badly decomposed body. Authorities said that the unidentified witness immediately called emergency responders to report the grisly finding.

An initial investigation showed that the body — which was "embedded in the dirt" — was missing its head. Reports added that the skull was nowhere to be found following a cursory examination of the surrounding area. The body, according to reports, had “hardly any extremities left” and was said to be in the late stages of decomposition.

"We're going to need to get a shovel and dig around the body so we can get everything in the body bag so the GBI Crime Lab will have all of the body to process," coroner Leon Jones said, the station reported. It was unclear how long the body was lying in the area. "We do know that this body has been here for a long time, that's it," he said.

WMAZ-TV reported that police found a pair of men's black tennis shoes located near the body. It is unknown at the time of this reporting whether the discarded shoes belonged to the deceased or if they simply happened to be in the same general area.

Authorities are working to determine the identity of the body and have yet to announce whether the human remains are of a male or female.

Investigators ask that if any person has information regarding the case to contact the Bibb County Sheriff's Office at (478) 751-7500.