By Seamus McGraw

PORTLAND, Maine (Crime Library) — Authorities say they should know by late this afternoon whether the body pulled out of the chilly waters near Portland's Old Port section just after dawn this morning is that of Lynn Moran, the vivacious dancer and children's advocate who vanished 24 days ago.

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The state Medical Examiner in Augusta is conducted an autopsy of the remains which were discovered about 7:30 a.m. at the end of a pier on Portland's waterfront, said Lt. Vern Malloch of the Portland Police Department's detective bureau. The body was recovered within sight of the Old Port area where the 24-year-old Moran was last seen on Oct. 10. It is highly active part of the city and it was scoured without success — by a platoon of searchers in the days after Moran's disappearance. Authorities opine that the body may have been submerged and that changing water temperatures and currents may have caused it to surface today when a passerby, waiting for a boat, spotted the body floating in the harbor.

Investigators are awaiting word from the Medical Examiner's office, expected this afternoon, before positively identifying the body as Moran.

In the meantime, Malloch declined Monday morning to say whether there were any obvious injuries to the body or how it was clothed. "We're not commenting on that," Malloch said. According to police reports, Moran, a one time Portland native who had returned to the city for a visit from her home in Massachusetts, was shoeless and wearing a tan plaid shirt and blue jeans when she was last seen at a local record store. She had just left a male acquaintance's house following a night of drinking a local pub.

Malloch said authorities expect to release additional details this afternoon. But even if the medical examiner is able to positively identify Moran's body today that will only answer part of the mystery. Authorities say they still don't have any evidence that clearly indicates whether Moran was the victim of foul play or an accident. It could be days or even weeks before the full results of the autopsy are released, and even then, there is no guarantee that it will conclusively answer the question of what happened to Lynn Moran.