Updated

Two Mexican government officials say a man killed in an early morning shootout in western Mexico may be a leader of the Knights Templar Cartel who had been reported dead in 2010.

The officials tell The Associated Press that forensic teams are trying to determine his identity, but they believe it is Nazario Moreno Gonzalez.

They spoke on condition of anonymity because they are not authorized to talk about the investigation.

The administration of former President Felipe Calderon reported Moreno dead in a shootout with Federal Police in December 2010, but they never recovered the body. People in the western state of Michoacan say they have seen Nazario since his alleged death. The state has been racked by a battle between Templarios and self-defense groups.