A dog has sniffed out the scent of human remains at a possible mass grave site where a dad dumped the bodies of dozens of women, police have confirmed.
Lucy Studey, 53, claimed her late father, Donald Dean Studey, who was 75 when he died in 2013, was a serial killer for decades.
She says she was forced, along with her siblings, to move the human remains of women and sex workers across farmland to their house in Iowa.
They were instructed to dump the bodies by their dad down a 90ft well and were made to use a wheelbarrow and a toboggan to deposit of the women all-year round.
A German shepherd was recently used by investigators to scout the location in Thurman, Iowa, US, when the dog started to smell human remains near the mushroom trail.
According to investigators, the dog started to smell the human scent and alerted their handlers.
Lucy told Newsweek : "I'm not surprised they hit there because my dad said the bodies were the reason the mushrooms grow so big. We put lye on spots on the mushroom trail."
This is the third dog which has smelt human remains after two dogs, both separately, on October 20 alerted their handlers near a well.
Fremont County Sheriff's investigators are working with state and federal authorities to determine their next search as the bodies could be scattered across the huge farmland.
According to Lucy, there were mainly women and some men buried as the siblings were forced to spread lye and dirt to cover up the bodies.
The excavation of the farmland and 90ft well could start next month - once there is enough evidence to go ahead with the search.
An excavation back in 2007 cost $300,000 (£264,000) but yielded no results - with the new search looking at untouched ground.
According to one official close with the investigation there are plans to dig up the site.
The official told Newsweek: "They are moving with momentum and want to see this resolved as quickly as possible.
"Any hint that they're struggling on the investigative side is not true. This is not two guys with a shovel digging in a well. It's a big undertaking."
Authorities believe the search for the bodies could cost around $500,000 (£439,000) as forensic anthropologists and genealogists will need to be called in.
In addition, the property is around five acres but bodies could be scattered across two adjacent homes.
Police won't need a warrant to search as landowners have already agreed to them searching the 425 acres of land.
Lucy told Newsweek: "He would just tell us we had to go to the well, and I knew what that meant.
"Every time I went to the well or into the hills, I didn’t think I was coming down. I thought he would kill me because I wouldn’t keep my mouth shut."
However, Lucy's sister Susan, 55, claimed her her allegations are wrong and said their father was a loving but strict dad.
She said: "Strict fathers don’t just turn into serial killers … I’m two years older than Lucy. I think I would know if my father murdered."
