Updated 28 July 2023 at 2:32pm: Mr. Lavogna confirmed that Mr. Paahe is a resident of Maricopa.

ORIGINAL STORY July 28, 2023, 1:50 PM: Maricopa police confirmed the body of a woman found in a drain earlier this week.

Maricopa spokesman Brandon Lavogna confirmed this morning that the deceased was 47-year-old Melanie Paje.

Lavogna did not immediately answer a question about whether Paje was a Maricopa resident. A person matching her name is pending in the Maricopa Court of Justice.

On Tuesday afternoon, police recovered Paje’s body in a ditch near Maricopa Casa Grande Highway and Stonegate Road.

Police spokeswoman Monica Williams said responding officers confirmed Pahe died there but said there were no signs of criminal activity on her body.

A cause and cause of death have yet to be determined, according to the Pinal County Coroner’s Office.

The agency’s investigative supervisor, Andre Davis, said the pending toxicology report may not be released until late October.