A body thought to be the remains of a teenage girl discovered hidden in the roof of an Italian church could shed new light on the murder of a British woman.

The corpse is believed to be that of 16-year-old Elisa Claps, who disappeared from her home in Potenza, southern Italy, 17 years ago.

Detectives believe the same person involved in her disappearance could also be responsible for the sadistic murder of British housewife Heather Barnett eight years ago.

The cases are linked by an unidentified lock of hair, which was found placed in Barnett's hand when her body was discovered in Bournemouth, Dorset.

In both cases, women living in the towns reported having their hair cut by an unknown man while travelling on buses around the time of the murders.

Barnett, a 48-year-old seamstress, was beaten over the head with a hammer-like object and stabbed several times after dropping her children off at school on 12 November 2002.

Her killer left her mutilated body arranged ritualistically on the ground with a 9cm lock of hair in her hand.

Her body was found by her children when they returned from school to their home in the Charminster area of the resort town.

At the time of Barnett's murder, 13 women in Bournemouth reported having clumps of their hair cut off by an unknown man.

But despite exhaustive forensic tests on the hair found in Barnett's hand, no match was ever found.

Later an appeal on Italian television led to 15 women coming forward to claim their hair had been taken on buses around the time of Claps's disappearance.

British detectives travelled to Italy in October 2009 to interview the women in the hope of finding a conclusive connection.

Now, workmen have found a body bricked up in the roof of a church in Potenza.

DNA tests are still being carried out to confirm the identity of the body, but a necklace, watch, sandals and glasses found at the scene are said to have belonged to Claps.

Heather Barnett's neighbour Danilo Restivo, originally from Italy, was arrested in the connection with the murder in 2006 but never charged. He has consistently denied any involvement.

A spokesman for Dorset police said: "Dorset police has been made aware of the discovery of a body in the church at Potenza ... believed to be that of missing Italian teenager Elisa Claps.

"We understand that a formal identification of the body has yet to be made and it is believed that the discovery was made by workmen carrying out repairs to the church roof.

"Sixteen-year-old Elisa Claps went missing from Potenza in southern Italy during September 1993.

"As part of the investigation into the murder of Heather Barnett a team of four detectives travelled to Italy during October 2009 to interview and take DNA samples from the hair of 15 women – in the Rome, Potenza, Turin, Rimini and Milan areas – who had reported having their hair cut in unusual or suspicious circumstances.

"We are continuing our normal contact with the Italian police and other authorities."