A body is removed from a forested area located behind an apartment building on White Oaks Ct in Whitby Ont. (Veronica Henri/SUN MEDIA)

WHITBY -- When Max Mehrmann went out onto his balcony yesterday morning, he could barely believe his eyes as he looked down at the ravine 17 storeys below and saw what appeared to be a partially clad body lying in a stream.

Moments later, after rushing outside, the 29-year-old's worst fears were confirmed as he found himself standing over a dead woman behind 200 White Oaks Ct., a highrise near Dundas St. W., a block west of Cochrane St.

"She was wearing a black and red sweater and absolutely nothing else," Mehrmann said yesterday.

"She wasn't wearing any underwear, or socks, or shoes, or anything," he added.

Mehrmann immediately called police and then spent much of the day telling Durham investigators how he happened upon the grisly discovery shortly after 9 a.m.

He's convinced "something bad" happened to the woman, who is believed to be in her 40s.

"It looked like she had been raped and murdered, like she was just left there to die," Mehrmann said.

Homicide detectives are investigating, but exactly what happened to the woman was not immediately known.

"Homicide has been called in because of the suspicious nature of this incident," spokesman Dave Selby said.

If the death is deemed to be a murder, it would be the region's sixth of the year and the second slaying in less than 12 hours.

The area, including the entrance to one of the four apartment buildings on the dead-end street, was sealed off throughout the day as police gathered evidence.

Police also canvassed residents of the buildings in search of potential witnesses.

CHRIS.DOUCETTE@SUNMEDIA.CA