Police recovered a body found at Cape Foulwind, south of Westport, over the weekend.
The grizzly discovery was made on Sunday and reported to police at 4.30pm.
Police say a post mortem examination is under way to formally identify who the person is.
"We are aware of commentary around Mikhail Buchanan who went missing from Maruia Falls in June.
"Until we complete the formal identification process we are unable to confirm the identity of the body."
