CEBU — Residents of Barangay Tisa, Cebu City were shocked to see that a dead woman’s body was stuffed inside a cardboard box on Monday.

Local police told ABS-CBN News that the victim's corpse was found after passersby noticed flies swarming the box.

Just when they thought it was an abandoned package, they saw a hand protruding and later notified authorities of the body.

When police opened the box, they saw the body wrapped in packaging tape and covered in a white blanket.

Both the dead woman's hands and feet were tied with wire.

“The eye was already bloated and there is a marking on the neck, possibly choked to death,” Maj. Angelito Valleser of the Cebu City Police said, noting that the victim may have died a "gruesome" death.

Valleser also noted that the victim may have been tortured before her death after police found bruises on her body.

The victim's body was also already in an advanced state of decomposition.

Police also said the victim was wearing a black jacket and denim shorts. A tattoo was found on one her limbs but is difficult to identify.

As of writing, the victim was still unidentified.

Valleser admitted that they have yet to find leads on the victim's identity, calling on the public to check if they had family members missing.

Police have coordinated with other police stations in Cebu City to see if any missing persons were reported in their areas, as well as other places in the Visayas.

Authorities were also trying to trace who left the box by the side of the street.

—Report from Annie Perez