A body left wrapped in a piece of carpet near Clover Creek is believed to be that of a 9-year-old girl who disappeared July 4, the Pierce County sheriff’s office said Thursday.

On the body was the frilly, flowered dress that Cynthia Ann Allinger was wearing when she vanished, Capt. Nik Dunbar said.

The body was found late Wednesday. A tip sent detectives to an area thick with brush that had been searched repeatedly, about five blocks from Cynthia’s home in Lakewood.

A positive identification was not possible until dental records could be checked, the Pierce County medical examiner’s office.

Details about how the girl died were not available.

A man described as a person of interest in the case has been questioned, but no one has been arrested or charged, Lt. Tom Miner said.

The man is a former neighbor who was convicted in 1990 of fourth-degree assault in a child molestation case in Thurston County.