People in a recently sold Colorado home made a gruesome discovery when they opened a discarded freezer left behind by the previous residents.

After the new owner tried to dump the device for free on Jan. 12, a person who stopped by the house to pick it up found a head and hands inside, the Mesa County Sheriff's Office said Friday.

Nine months later, authorities say they have identified the remains as those of a teenage girl whose family previously lived at the Grand Junction home – and a criminal investigation is underway.

DNA testing confirmed the remains belonged to Amanda Leariel Overstreet, who was about 16 when she was last seen in April 2005, the Mesa County Sheriff's Office said. However, there was no record of the girl ever being reported missing, authorities added. She was the biological daughter of the previous owner of the house.

Wendy Likes, public information officer for the Mesa County Sheriff's Office, told HuffPost that the office has not conducted any forensic testing. It is unclear whether the girl's identity could be determined using genetic genealogy.

An autopsy conducted on January 17 confirmed that the remains were human. the sheriff's office said at the timeand her death is being investigated as a murder.

Forensic review of the evidence is ongoing and the circumstances surrounding Overstreet's disappearance remain under investigation, Likes said, adding that authorities do not plan to release further details at this time.

“It was very important to us to ensure that she was clearly identified, that we gave as much time as was necessary, and that her family members were informed of her identification before it was released to the public,” Likes told HuffPost . “We want to do right by her and make sure her death is thoroughly investigated, and that will take more time.”