BAKERSFIELD, Calif. -- A woman's body was found inside of a fireplace flue and now detectives are trying to figure out how she got there.

Around 9 p.m. on Saturday, officers with the Bakersfield Police Department went to a home in the 4300 block of La Mirada Drive on reports of a dead woman found lodged in a fireplace flue.

Bakersfield Woman's Body Found Stuffed In Fireplace Flue

Police said 49-year-old Jacquelyn Kotarac was located by a friend of the homeowner who was taking care of the man’s fish tank while he was away.

Around 10:15 p.m. on Aug. 25, police said Kotarac tried to force her way inside the home on La Mirada Drive where she was involved in a relationship with the resident.

The man left the house undetected to avoid a confrontation and stayed the night elsewhere, Sgt. Mary DeGeare said.

DeGeare said at some point, Kotarac climbed on the roof and tried to get in through the chimney.

When Kotarac did not arrive for work on Aug. 26, both her assistant and the resident searched for her at the La Mirada home and located her car and belongings but there was no indication she got inside the home.

She was reported missing by the resident and her medical staff on Thursday afternoon.

DeGeare said "people were inside the home during the days following but there was still no indication she was there. It was not until Saturday evening; the decomposition of the body in the fireplace flue became evident and was detected by the housesitter."

The house sitter detected a strong odor coming from the fireplace and upon inspection, located the Kotarac lodged in the flue about 2 feet above the top of the fireplace interior opening, according to DeGeare.

Investigators arrived and members of the Bakersfield Fire Department spent five hours dismantling the chimney and flue from the exterior of the home to access Kotarac's body.

DeGeare said that all the evidence, thus far, indicates that Kotarac voluntarily got on the roof via a permanent ladder and voluntarily removed the chimney cap, then slid down the flue feet first.

The investigation is continuing.