A child’s foot and other body parts have been found in a park in the crime-ridden US city of Chicago, police said.

Police investigated a gruesome scene in Garfield Park after the body parts were discovered in the western edge of the park's lagoon Saturday afternoon.

“We are searching the lagoon for human remains,” Anthony Guglielmi, the chief police spokesman, said late Saturday, according to local media. “No word yet on how any of this happened.”

The foot was found at 4 pm and the other body parts were discovered later.

The park was closed to the public as investigators searched the area, police said.

The search ended for the night about 10:15 pm, but police said it would resume on Sunday morning.

Deadliest day in 12 years 

Chicago, America’s second most populous city in the state of Illinois, witnessed its most violent day in more than a decade this week.

Eight people were shot to death on Wednesday, the most homicides in one day in the city in 12 years, The Chicago Tribune reported.

The death toll from gun violence Wednesday surpassed the 10 murders Chicago experienced on July 5, 2003, according to the report.

Murders are up 20 percent in the city from last year at this time, according to crime statistics.

Homicide rates have increased in other big cities across the United States with over 30 cities reporting a rise in gun violence from a year ago, The New York Times reported earlier this week.

Law enforcement experts believe factors may vary from city to city, but it is unknown why the rates are rocketing.

Street gang fights over drug turf and the accessibility of guns are thought to be the major factors in major cities, including Chicago.