UPDATE: Woman found in Hughson canal identified

A woman found dead in a canal Monday morning has been identified as 68-year-old Maria Victoria Ortiz of Hughson.

A motorist spotted Ortiz’s body just after 8 a.m., floating face-down in the canal just south of Tully Road, near East Hatch Road, according to Stanislaus County Sheriff’s Office Sgt. Luke Schwartz.

Patrol deputies responded to the scene and assisted firefighters and paramedics with recovering the body.

While detectives were still at the scene investigating, Ortiz’s family arrived at a Sheriff’s Office substation to report her missing, Schwartz said.

An autopsy is scheduled for Wednesday to determine how Ortiz died. How long Ortiz had been in the canal, how she got there, when she was last seen and whether foul play is suspected all remain under investigation, Schwartz said.

Anyone with information about the case is asked to contact Detective Summerton at 209-525-7032.