CLEVELAND NATIONAL FOREST, Calif. -- A decomposing body found Friday in the Cleveland National Forest may be that of a missing woman authorities suspect was murdered by a convicted sex offender.

The body was discovered by forest workers on a brushy slope near Buckman Springs Road and Interstate 8 about 11 a.m., according to sheriff's officials.

It was unclear whether the remains were that of a man or woman, Lt. Jim Nolan said.

On June 5, detectives arrested Robert Steven Carson, 40, of Spring Valley, on suspicion of murdering the Costco employee, Brittany Hart of Santee, despite the fact that her body had not been found.

Investigators believe Carson spoke with Hart via cell phone the day before she vanished, and they also found a large amount of blood in the basement of the registered sex offender's Marie Street home.

The discovery of a body near a "heavily traveled thoroughfare" suggested that the remains did not belong to an illegal immigrant, Nolan said.

"Generally speaking, when we have people who have died of exposure ... like I say, the international travelers -- it's usually in a more remote area, and they can't get to some type of help," he told reporters at the scene.

Hart's family had arranged for a series of searches for the missing woman over the last week. Friday morning, volunteers were combing rural areas near Alpine, northwest of where the remains were discovered.