Body Found in Truck Identified

A woman whose body was found in the back of a pickup truck parked at Tapia Park in the Santa Monica Mountains was identified Tuesday as a 35-year-old Malibu resident, Los Angeles County sheriff’s deputies said.

Deputy Bill Linnemeyer said the body of Jann Coates was found about 10 p.m. Sunday when a passerby looked into the back of the truck in the 800 block of Las Virgenes Road, between Malibu and Agoura.

Coates’ body showed signs of trauma to the head but an exact cause of death was unknown pending an autopsy, Linnemeyer said. The investigation was being handled by homicide detectives, he said.