The Dyer County Sheriff's Department confirmed on Monday the body found in Dyer County on Saturday is that of the missing mother of four, Karen Swift, and the case is being investigated as a homicide.

Dyer County Sheriff Jeff Box stated the body was positively identified by Swift's dental records after it was sent to the Shelby County Medical Examiner's Office in Memphis.

Swift's body had reportedly been concealed in an area off of Harness Road. Box said the body had been concealed by undergrowth and vegetation for some time close to Bledsoe Cemetery off of Harness Road. The location where her body was discovered is approximately 3 miles from where Swift's 2004 Nissan Murano was found abandoned at the intersection of Millsfield Highway and Harness Road on Sunday, Oct. 30, with a reported flat tire.

Box stated the injuries to Swift's body, coupled with the placement of it, warranted the investigation to turn from a missing person case to a murder investigation.

"Due to her body being placed and concealed in the area that it was recovered from and apparent injuries to her body it has been ruled a homicide," said Box in an interview with the State Gazette. "We are currently awaiting results of an autopsy from the medical examiner's office in Memphis to determine the cause of death."

The body was found in a place that is normally covered in kudzu, approximately 100 yards from a tall iron cross that is visible looking south from Highway 78, close to the Obion River Bridge.

Authorities attribute recent cold weather conditions to suppressing and deadening the undergrowth that had Swift's body concealed from view.

The sheriff's department has been investigating her disappearance, gathering evidence and performing searches in an attempt to find her body and determine if there was a suspect involved.

Authorities are not naming any suspects nor are they releasing any information about how the body was discovered at this time due to it being an ongoing homicide investigation.

"We will continue to move forward with the homicide investigation," said Box.

The Dyer County Sheriff's Office requests that any person with information about this case contact the Dyer County Sheriff's Office at 731-285-2802 or call the T.B.I. at 1-800-TBI-FIND .