Norma Lopez Family Awaits ID of Remains Found in Field

(July 21) -- Authorities said today that decomposed remains found in a remote field are those of missing Southern California teen Norma Lopez, who police believe was kidnapped on her way home from summer school.

The Riverside County coroner's office said an autopsy enabled authorities to positively identify the remains as Lopez's, according to The Associated Press and the Los Angeles Times. Officials did not release a cause of death.

The body, shirtless and wearing jeans, was discovered Tuesday afternoon by a resident doing yard work in Moreno Valley, just two miles from where Lopez was last seen walking home from Valley View High School on Thursday. Police later found some of her belongings and "signs of a struggle" nearby, according to the Times.

Lopez, 17, was reported missing by her older sister, Sonja, after she failed to return home from school.

Her family appealed for leads from the community at a news conference at Moreno Valley City Hall hours before the body was found.

"If someone has her or knows about her, please ... just call. We just need to know about her," Norma's father, Martin Lopez, said in Spanish, the Times reported. "It's destroying us. Every day that passes, every hour."

Riverside County sheriff's Sgt. Joseph Borja said investigators were following "a few leads," but they have not identified a suspect.

The Sheriff's Department has offered a $35,000 reward for information leading to the arrest and conviction of anyone responsible for the teen's disappearance.