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n what appears to be a homicide, a British woman was found dead on Thursday afternoon with multiple injuries to her body, inside her rented villa in Junjungan, a quiet neighborhood of upscale villas amid the vast expanse of rice fields in Ubud.

The incident shocked local residents who had just celebrated the religious festival of Galungan. The news spread quickly throughout Ubud, which is known as Bali'€™s cultural center and is rarely the scene of serious crime.

The woman, who was in her 40s, was identified as Anne Marie Kathryn Drozdz.

Drozdz was found by an American, Gery Hening William, the husband of the villa'€™s owner, at around 4 p.m. in the afternoon. At that time William was bringing fresh towels into the villa when he saw its door was open and damaged.

He rushed inside only to find Drozdz lying on the floor with a black cloth covering her face. The police said the woman had stayed alone in the villa since early May.

Her body was taken to Sanglah General Hospital, some 22 kilometers away in the island'€™s capital of Denpasar. An external examination concluded she had been dead several hours before her body was discovered.

'€œThe estimated time of death is 12 to 24 hours before the examination,'€ Sanglah'€™s forensics facility coordinator Ida Bagus Putu Alit said, adding that the examination had commenced at 9:15 p.m.

The examination also found bruises on the woman'€™s body and a gash on her lips.

'€œWe also found injuries consistent with the result of ligature strangulation on her neck,'€ Alit said.

The forensic team will carry out a full autopsy before it is able to determine the exact cause of death. However, the result of the external examination was sufficient to rule out death by natural causes.

'€œWe found signs of violence, so we believe her death took place under suspicious circumstances,'€ Alit said, adding that he was waiting for a formal request for an autopsy from the police as well as written permission from the victim'€™s family.

Gianyar Police chief Adj. Sr. Comr. Komang Sandi Arsana told The Jakarta Post that the police had contacted the British Embassy to arrange a full autopsy.

'€œWe are pursuing all angles. It is an ongoing investigation and I cannot reveal any details at this point. We have yet to find a significant lead, but the detectives are working around the clock,'€ he said.

So far, the police have questioned several witnesses, including William, and plan to search the neighborhood for more witnesses.

This is the latest in a string of violent crimes that have shocked the island'€™s residents. The incident occured only a few days after Bali Police pledged to reduce crime in the province.

On Thursday morning, a chicken vendor at Bualu traditional market in Nusa Dua was hacked to death by an assailant in front of the market. The victim was identified as 44-year-old Abuyasit.

Then, earlier last week, the island was shocked by the death of 18-year-old Kim Eun-sol, a Korean woman who died during a mugging on Jl. Teuku Umar Barat, Kerobokan, Badung.

She was on a motorcycle in the early hours of last Saturday when she was attacked by thieves on two motorcycles who tried to steal her bag.

As she attempted to defend herself, she fell off her bike and was hit by another bike traveling in the opposite direction.

The police have yet to find a lead in the case. '€œWe'€™re still investigating,'€ said Denpasar Police spokesperson Comr. Ida Bagus Sarjana.