Overnight suspicious death
Posted by: Laurann Robinson
A body was found early this morning by a jogger near 1st and west O street.
Police are treating it as a possible homicide.
It happened early this morning, just after midnight. A jogger came across a man's body, laying in the middle of the path near the Salt Creek River.. And called police.
"It appeared as though an individual in his mid 50s was laying face down, had an injury to the left side of the head and kind of a severe cut to the left thumb," said Police Chief Jim Peschong.
Police say they are treating this as a suspicious death.. They say there were traces of broken glass next to the body… But the cause of the death is still unknown.
Although the man's name has not yet been released, he is said to be a local transient, who had frequently stayed at the People's City Mission.
Jeff Tyson, with the mission says the man had been staying there on and off for years.
He explains, "it was a person that stayed here frequently and so we knew him. He was on our bed list both Saturday night he stayed here, he was actually on the bed list to stay last night."
Tyson also says the man had made friends at the people's city mission, and they spent the day mourning the loss.
"And it's hard because one of their friends, they are trying to cope with it, just like anyone else would," Tyson said.
Chief Peschong adds, "right now we are viewing it as a suspicious death, potentially a possible homicide, but we really won't know until we've actually got the autopsy."
Again, the man's name has not yet been released, and won't be until the next of kin are notified.
And the death is still under investigation, as police try to piece together what happened on this bike trail.
