Authorities identify body found along river in Pierre

PIERRE, S.D. (AP) - Authorities have identified the woman whose body was found along the Missouri River in Pierre this week.

Police say the body of 40-year-old Lola Bear Stops was found just off the Lewis and Clark Trail near the Down’s Marine Peninsula by a person walking a dog on Monday.

Identification was made through a fingerprint analysis sent to the South Dakota state forensic lab, according to Capt. Bryan Walz.

The cause and manner of death may not be known until final autopsy tests are returned in six to eight weeks, Walz told KCCR.

Now that police have learned her identity, detectives can contact family and friends to try to find out what happened to her, he added.