Five after they reportedly went missing, bodies of four members of a family were on Wednesday found stacked on top of each other and buried in a pit in the backyard of their house in the district.

The bodies bore injury marks, police said.

Police identified the deceased as Krishnan (52), his wife Susheela (50), their daughter Arsha (21) and son Arjun (19).

Neighbours said they had not seen the family for the past four days.

Police said they could have been killed after July 29.

The deceased lived in a secluded place in a rubber estate at Mundanmudi.

Neighbours and some relatives went to the house this morning and found blood stains on the floor and walls and immediately informed police.

Police said a search in the backyard revealed loose soil and when they removed it, the four bodies, with injuries, were found dumped on top of each other.

The bodies have been shifted to Kottayam medical college for post-mortem.