Homicide investigators are at the early stages of a death investigation after finding a body in Medford’s northern section of the Bear Creek Greenway.

At about 10:15 a.m. Friday, two homeless people found the body north of Railroad Park, called police and directed police to the scene, according to Medford police Lt. Mike Budreau.

The body was about 75 yards away from the bike path, according to Budreau, and had been there for an extended period of time.

“This is definitely not a fresh or recent crime scene,” Budreau said.

Because of the body’s state, investigators were not immediately able to determine the person’s age, race or gender. All they can determine thus far is that the person was an adult.

Because of the circumstances and location, Budreau said investigators are treating the death as a homicide.

Budreau said that the investigation is in “the very early stages,” and as of close to 5 p.m. Friday, the body had not been moved from where police found it.

Budreau said Medford police detectives and investigators with the Oregon State Police crime lab and the Jackson County Medical Examiner’s office were still on scene scouring the area for clues.

Investigators take the time they need to do a thorough investigation, according to Budreau, which means that piecing together clues about the person’s cause of death and time frame of when they died will take time.

“They’ll take a closer examination of the body once they get it removed from the scene,” Budreau said.

The next step in the investigation, according to Budreau, is an autopsy slated for sometime early next week.

“We just don’t have a lot of answers at this point,” Budreau said.

Reach reporter Nick Morgan at nmorgan@rosebudmedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @MTCrimeBeat.