Hollywood police on Sunday began the grisly task of trying to identify the body of a woman who was cut in half and left in a Dumpster in the Pet Supermarket parking lot on Federal Highway.

The body was discovered by a store worker when he opened the container to empty the morning trash.

The victim was described as a white woman between the age of 20 and 40 who was 5 feet 6 inches tall with brown eyes and dark hair. She was wearing a tube top and had a Caesarean scar across her abdomen, Hollywood Police Sgt. Roni Mangan said.

“At this point, the investigation is very preliminary, and an autopsy won’t be finished until Monday,” Mangan said.

In the parking lot of the Pet Supermarket at 2111 N. Federal Highway, crime-scene technicians dusted the outside of the large metal container for fingerprints and occasionally opened the unlocked top to look inside. As the temperatures rose, the odor that first alerted the employee began to waft over the hot asphalt.

Nearly three hours after the discovery, officials from the Broward Medical Examiner’s office decided to move the Dumpster to their office, where they began sifting through the contents.

Investigators would not speculate on when the body was put in the container, but Hollywood Lt. Chad Wagner said the Dumpster had last been emptied at 4 p.m. Saturday, and the employee made the discovery about noon Sunday.

“At approximately 12:08 p.m., the employee came out and noticed that the Dumpster wasn’t locked like it is supposed to be, and he was bothered by that. But when he opened the top, he was suspicious of the smell, and when he looked inside, he could see the victim’s legs and lower body,” Wagner said.

Pet Supermarket closes at 9 p.m. on Saturday, and residents of the area said that the parking lot is usually empty but well-lit at night.

Several people said that the area is well-traveled by the patrons of two local bars that are open until 4 a.m.

Residents also said that stretch of Federal Highway is often worked by prostitutes and drug sellers, especially on a Saturday night.

“There’s always somebody walking by here at night,” said Robert Stern, who lives in an apartment directly across the street from the lot. “It would have had to be after 4 for someone to do that without being seen.

“But if somebody’s sick enough to do that, they probably don’t care who saw them.”

Anyone with information is asked to call Hollywood Police detectives at 954-967-4411 or Crime Stoppers at 954-493-8477.