A post mortem examination was carried out and DNA taken from on the remains last Wednesday, with authorities hoping the results will shed more light on the woman and how she died.

Police have been quick to quash any link between the remains and serial killer Ivan Milat, who infamously buried his

victims in the forest.

All authorities will confirm are the remains belong to a woman, aged between 20 and 30 years of age.’

The remains are at least 10 years old and there is no sign of physical trauma, for example being stabbed or shot.

Suggestions the remains could belong to missing Bathurst woman Janine Vaughan are are rife, but police refuse to confirm any reports about the victim.

Sydney media reports suggest a T-shirt found with the remains holds the key to identifying the woman, although again, police will not comment.

Janine was last seen in the early hours of December 7, 2001 wearing black pants and a dark long sleeve top.

Jessica Small, whose age places her outside the profile of the remains, was

last seen back in October 1997 wearing jeans and a cream top.

Police said yesterday the DNA from any unknown bodies or bones located in the forest will in due course be checked against the DNA data base. The time to identify a person depends on the level of DNA testing and profile development and could take between days and months.