Gardai have yet to identify a woman whose body was found by the roadside in Co Kilkenny on Friday afternoon.
Detectives launched a murder enquiry after the State Pathologist Dr Marie Cassidy carried out a post mortem which showed that the woman, believed to be from Africa, died a violent death.
A passer-by spotted the body in undergrowth yesterday at around midday on Friday, a short distance from the road at Breanor Bridge, near Pilltown.
Detectives have set up an incident room in Carrick-on-Suir in Co Tipperary after they upped the investigation from a suspicious death to that of murder.
Gardai said they believe the woman may have been living in the area for several years. It is thought the woman may have been dead for some time before her body was found.
Gardai believe the woman is an African national but, as yet, they have no identification or age.
Detectives from the National Bureau of Criminal Investigations have joined the local force to carry out door-to-door enquiries in the area.
The gardai are also looking at whether the woman was killed at the scene at Breanor Bridge or if she was killed elsewhere and her body dumped in the undergrowth.
Gardai said no-one had been reported missing in the area. The full post mortem results including the actual cause of death have not yet been revealed.