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Ciudad Juarez –  Investigators found the bodies of at least 18 people in 11 graves at a ranch in Palomas, a Mexican town across the border from Columbus, New Mexico, the Chihuahua state Attorney General's Office said.

The bodies, believed to have been buried between eight and 12 months ago, are those of 17 men and a woman, the AG's office said.

"The finding was made after the arrest last Friday of five people who had more than 176 kilos of marijuana, a fragmentation grenade and other arms. We learned about the bodies in the course of the investigation," AG's office spokesman Carlos Gonzalez told Efe.

The suspects were identified as Marcos Nuñez Tabizon, 31, Leomar Armando Delgado Lomeli, 21, Carlos Raymundo Hernandez Macias, 21, Luis Sanchez Calderon, 27, and Jorge Zazumbo Olivo, 41.

Investigators began digging Saturday and finished their work on Monday at the El Capricho ranch, located eight kilometers (4.9 miles) south of Palomas, which is in Chihuahua state, officials said.

The cause of death has not been determined, crime scene investigators said, adding that the bodies were taken to the coroner's office for autopsies.

Army troops arrested the five suspects after receiving an anonymous tip that several men were loading drugs into vehicles.

Chihuahua, Mexico's most violent state, is home to Ciudad Juarez, the country's murder capital.

More than 2,700 homicides have been reported in Juarez so far this year and roughly 8,000 people have been slain in the border city since the beginning of 2008.

The Juarez and Sinaloa cartels, backed by hitmen from local street gangs, have been fighting for control of Juarez, located across the border from El Paso, Texas.

The remains of a man who had been quartered, meanwhile, were found on a road in Samalayuca, a town about 100 kilometers (62 miles) south of Ciudad Juarez, the AG's office said.

Residents found a leg at the intersection of Mariano Jimenez and Crecencio Amador streets and later spotted another extremity several blocks away.

The rest of the body was found wrapped in a blanket about 30 meters (98 feet) from the railroad tracks, officials said.