A 97-year-old US woman was found dead in the refrigerator of her home in a Mexico resort town, officials said.

The body was found in Playas de Rosarito, about 25 kilometers (16 miles) from the border with California. Some 14,000 Americans live there, mostly retirees, according to the Mexican Tourism Board.

The two-door refrigerator was tied shut with a towel. The woman's body showed signs of violence, said Jesus Antonio Chavez Hoyos, a deputy prosecutor in Tijuana, near Playas de Rosarito.

The woman was identified as Hellen Minley, from Ohio.

She was living in the resort town with a couple hired to look after her. Those caretakers have not been found yet, news reports said.

A worker fixing things in the house saw blood in Minley's house and alerted the authorities.