ROCKFORD — The gender, identity and cause of death of a decomposed body remain a mystery six months after it was discovered rotting in a duct-taped garbage can inside a Market Street apartment.

Rockford police detectives consider the death suspicious, but there is no evidence so far to prove whether the person was a homicide victim, Lt. Kurt Whisenand said.

"Because we don't have any reports on a definitive cause of death, it is still a suspicious death investigation," Whisenand said. "There is ongoing testing and scientific review being conducted by a forensic anthropologist that takes much longer than a normal autopsy. So we are waiting on those tests for a final determination if it is a homicide. It's still a possibility the person died of natural causes and was disposed of improperly."

The body was discovered by police July 6 after a report of a domestic disturbance in the apartment building.

No arrests have been made in the death investigation.

Bradley G. Carlson, 55, who lived in the apartment, remains in the Winnebago County Jail on a $50,000 bond after pleading not guilty to a charge of unlawful use of a weapon. A registered sex offender, Carlson was arrested when police found ammunition in his possession.

Winnebago County Coroner Bill Hintz said in a phone interview that the body remains a "John Doe."

Authorities had a lead on the identity but DNA testing proved it was not that person. And the size of the bones and other evidence were not a match for known missing persons from the area, Hintz said.

A report from the forensic anthropologist will reveal whether the body is that of a male or female, approximate age, weight, height and race, Hintz said.

DNA testing is ready to proceed after the report is complete. But Hintz said forensic scientists would need a DNA sample to compare it with in order to prove the identity of the body.

Jeff Kolkey: 815-987-1374; jkolkey@rrstar.com; @jeffkolkey