Local police in Nanchang, Jiangxi Province, said on Tuesday that they are still investigating the case that saw two girls killed in a washing machine.

An autopsy, which was initially opposed by the family, was also conducted on Tuesday, the local news portal jxnews.com.cn reported.

The two girls, both surnamed Tu, aged 2 and 3 respectively, were found covered in blood inside the machine by their father on Saturday afternoon in Xinjian county, some 40 minutes after the parents realized they had disappeared.

The doctor who treated the girls said that there were bruises on their heads and feet and also some wounds over the trunk of their bodies.

"Their family did not agree to the autopsy until Tuesday, and it took us over an hour to find where they were buried," a deputy police chief in Xinjian, surnamed Min, was quoted by the local news portal jxgdw.com as saying.

The family responded that they were against it as they thought was cruel and disrespectful. "We agreed after we were told only the autopsy can verify the real cause of the girls' deaths," the grandfather said.

The police said Tuesday that they only knew the case Monday morning, when a relative called for information related to compensation, as they claimed the deaths were caused by the malfunctioning machine.

The Qingdao-based Haier, manufacturer of the machine, said they have sent staff to cooperate with investigation.

The police also said they have not ruled out the possibility of murder.

Global Times - Agencies