RCMP say they believe they have found the remains of Phoenix Sinclair, a five-year-old girl who went missing in Fisher River, Man., about 10 months ago.

Police said Saturday they had found human remains in a wooded area on the Fisher River First Nation reserve, about 150 kilometres north of Winnipeg.

They believe the remains are of the young girl, but they are waiting for the results of a forensic test before they make a positive identification.

Phoenix Sinclair had been a foster child most of her life. (CBC)

Samantha Dawn Kematch, 24, and Karl Wesley McKay, 43, have been charged with first-degree murder in the case.

A foster child most of her life, Phoenix had been returned to the custody of her birth mother, Kematch.

Police say Phoenix was missing for nine months before anyone reported her absence.

Manitoba launched two reviews into the province's child-welfare system last month after police laid the murder charges.

The case has raised serious concerns about the child-welfare system. Three children have died while in the care of Child and Family Services agencies in the past year. Another six children who died last year had received assistance from Child and Family Services in the past.