Autopsy inconclusive after body found near Biskupiec in search for missing Natalia Z.
Preliminary autopsy results for a woman found dead behind a woodpile in Biskupiec yielded no cause of death, while DNA testing to confirm whether the remains belong to 23-year-old Natalia Z. is expected to take up to three weeks.
Discovery near Biskupiec
On 26 September 2026, a local resident gathering firewood for a stove discovered the body of a young woman lying face down behind a woodpile on the outskirts of Biskupiec, in Poland's Warmian-Masurian Voivodeship. Investigators believe the deceased is 23-year-old Natalia Z., who had been reported missing approximately six days earlier, around 20 September 2026. The discovery site was situated on waterlogged marshland, which accelerated post-mortem tissue changes. The advanced state of decomposition and severe swelling of soft tissue prevented family members and investigators from making a positive visual identification.
Inconclusive autopsy and forensic delays
Forensic pathologists in Olsztyn carried out a post-mortem examination to establish how the woman died, but the initial inspection yielded no definitive findings regarding physical trauma or the mechanism of death. Because the body was recovered from waterlogged terrain, significant decomposition and swelling hindered direct visual recognition. To establish official legal identity, specialists extracted biological samples for comparative DNA profiling, a laboratory process that officials state will require between two and three weeks. Until genetic results confirm the identity, the body remains in cold storage at the Olsztyn prosectorium, leaving the family unable to arrange a funeral. The case was elevated from the regional prosecutor in Biskupiec to the District Prosecutor's Office in Olsztyn.
The preliminary results of the autopsy are inconclusive. At present, the cause of death is not known, nor do we have injuries that would demonstrate the mechanism of death.
- Natalia Z. is reported missing from near Biskupiec.
- A resident discovers a woman's body behind a woodpile on the outskirts of Biskupiec.
- Investigators return to comb the meadow around the woodpile for physical evidence.
- District prosecutors confirm autopsy results are inconclusive and submit samples for DNA testing.
Final known movements and pub visits
Investigators are reconstructing the days leading up to the disappearance. According to statements provided by an acquaintance, Natalia visited a pub in the nearby town of Szczytno with a friend several days before she went missing, where she drank alcohol and spent time in the company of several men before returning home safely. Two days before her disappearance, on a Friday, she reportedly traveled back to the same Szczytno establishment by herself. Natalia resided with her partner in a rural village near Biskupiec prior to vanishing.
Search efforts and site inspection
Following her disappearance around 20 September 2026, Natalia's partner took an active role in local search operations, issuing appeals on social media and offering a monetary reward for information on her location. Police investigators questioned the partner and subsequently released him to his home without pressing charges, and no suspects have been charged in connection with the death. On 30 September 2026, prosecutors accompanied by police officers returned to the discovery site on the outskirts of Biskupiec. Law enforcement teams combed through the wet meadow around the woodpile for several hours, checking the ground meter by meter for items, footprints, or other evidence.
The body remains at our disposal.
