Authorities say arrests have been made in the investigation surrounding six bodies found last week at a remote dirt crossroads in the southern California desert. A spokesperson for the San Bernardino county sheriff’s department, Mara Rodriguez, said a press conference will be held late on Monday on the homicide investigation. She shared no additional details. The department has not said how the people died but has described it as an “active and ongoing” homicide investigation. Authorities found the bodies in the Mojave desert outside El Mirage last week after responding to a request for a wellness check. Five bodies were found late on Tuesday and a sixth the following morning. Media reports have said the bodies had gunshot wounds and appeared to be burned. Investigators found two vehicles at the scene. The sheriff’s department has so far released little information about the killings. The area, 50 miles (80km) north-east of Los Angeles, is so remote that the sheriff’s department called in help from the California highway patrol’s aviation division to find the scene. Overhead footage from TV stations last week showed a dark blue SUV with a passenger window blown out and another door open, with part of the image blurred. The footage also showed numerous yellow evidence markers in the scrubby desert and yellow tape restricting access from a nearby road.