YAVAPAI COUNTY, Ariz. — Editor's note: The body was identified on Dec. 26 as 23-year-old Mingwei Du. He was a student from China who was attending a Phoenix university.
A body was found among plane wreckage believed to be a couple of days old in Yavapai County on Friday, according to the Yavapai County Sheriff's Office.
Per YCSO, a rancher called the sheriff's office to report finding wreckage from a plane on remote ranch land off of Flower Pot Road, which is southeast of the I-17 and Highway 169.
The plane sustained "substantial damage," authorities said.
The rancher told deputies the crash appeared a couple of days old. It was not immediately known why the plane crashed.
Deputies arrived, confirmed the findings and called out rescue teams to search the area.
Local authorities said only one person was on board. No additional bodies were located.
YCSO says the plane is a fixed-wing single-engine type. It was later identified as a Mooney M-20 aircraft.
The National Transportation Safety Board was notified and arrived to take over the investigation. The remains have not been identified and are now in the medical examiner's custody.
Volunteers from the Yavapai County Search and Rescue Team searched the area around the crash site.
YCSO has not yet released photos of the plane.
We will update this story with new information as it becomes available.