Two human arms found on Rio de Janeiro's Ipanema beach

A couple taking a stroll along Rio de Janeiro's Ipanema beach made a gruesome discovery when they found two human arms floating in the water.

According to The Australian, the arms were bound at the wrist with black tape when they were found at 7.30pm local time on Monday night.

A rubbish collector employed by the city was then able to retrieve them from the water.

The arms are thought to belong to a man, but the victim's identity has not yet been confirmed.

Alaska Dispatch reports that the limbs have been sent to the Medical-Legal Institute (IML) for a postmortem examination, and fingerprints were taken in an attempt to identify the victim.

Military police are now investigating how the arms came to be there.

The finding comes just weeks after an American tourist was raped and robbed on a minibus in Rio de Janeiro while her male companion was held captive and beaten.

According to the Daily Mail, the pair boarded the minibus in the Copacabana beach district. Three men then boarded and ordered all other passengers off, before carrying out the horrifying six-hour ordeal.

The incidents have raised some security concerns for the upcoming 2014 World Cup, and the 2016 Olympics.

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