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Body Found In Angeles National Forest

LOS ANGELES (CBS) — A body was found Monday in the Angeles National Forest, but it was unclear if it was that of a man being sought in a fatal shooting in the area last week, authorities said.

The body was discovered late this morning, sheriff's officials said. Authorities have been looking for 53-year-old Kevin Pochter of Huntington Beach, who is suspected of fatally shooting a lifelong friend and leaving him on the side of a road in the forest.

Pochter, an experienced hiker, was last seen Saturday night hiking in the San Gabriel mountains above Arcadia and Monrovia, said officials.

Investigators believe Pochter was involved in the death of 53-year-old Dean Ron Albert, who was found lying on the side of the road at the Chantry Flats Campground around 5:40 p.m. Thursday, sheriff's officials said.

Albert was taken to a hospital, where he was later pronounced dead from a gunshot wound to the upper body.

The victim's vehicle, a silver four-door 1993 BMW 740, was taken from the shooting site on Big Santa Anita Canyon Road and turned up in the parking lot of the Mount Wilson Observatory around 11 a.m. Saturday, authorities said.

Deputies spent the rest of that day searching the area between the Mount Wilson Observatory and the Chantry Flats recreational area with help from officers from the Arcadia, Sierra Madre and Monrovia police departments.

Deputies from the sheriff's Special Enforcement Bureau and Emergency Services details carried out a ground search for Pochter on Sunday over more than 62 square miles of rugged terrain while a sheriff's helicopter crew looked for him from the air, officials said.

Pochter was described as white and bald, 6 feet tall and weighing 175 pounds, with blue eyes and wearing dark clothing.

Authorities urged anyone with information regarding the shooting to contact the sheriff's Homicide Bureau at (323) 890-5500.

(©2011 CBS Local Media, a division of CBS Radio Inc. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. Wire services contributed to this report.)

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