Los Angeles Police Department Chief Jim McDonnell said during a police commission meeting Tuesday that the boy appeared to be between 5 and 7 years old and showed signs of trauma.
The child has not been identified and there's been no match to a missing person, the chief added.
McDonnell said investigators canvassed the area for surveillance footage and "identified several potential sources of evidence." An arrest has not yet been made.
"We are coordinating with regional partners and continuing efforts to identify the victim and determine the circumstances surrounding this tragic incident," McDonnell said at the meeting.
Officers found the child's body Saturday morning after responding to the 8200 block of Van Nuys Boulevard, the LAPD said.
A homeless man reportedly found the boy and had someone call for help.
The officers requested a privacy canopy at the location and cordoned off the empty parking lot with yellow tape. The scene was in a commercial area that includes a nearby furniture store, a banquet hall and a nonprofit's office.
Police initially said the boy was between 3 and 5 years old. A coroner will determine how the child died.