Story highlights Police don't know how long the forensic tests will take

Weekend's remaining public searches were canceled after discovery

"We have a great deal of work ahead of us," police chief says

The University of Virginia student was last seen early on September 13

(CNN) Sgt. Dale Terry of the Chesterfield Sheriff's Department and his small search team were finishing up for the day when they made the discovery.

Behind an abandoned home -- just eight miles from where Hannah Graham was last seen -- they found a skull and bones scattered across a creek bed, he told a local television station.

"It was not buried, and its location was not far from the road," he told the station. "There was not any crushing of any bones. As far as skull, everything looked to be intact to me."

Nearby was a pair of black pants, similar to ones Graham was wearing.

Could these be the remains of the University of Virginia student who disappeared five weeks ago?

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