A body, believed to belong to missing resident Jerry Spaulding, has been found in Livingston County,
According to a press release from the Livingston County Sheriff’s Office, deputies responded to a report of a body in the area of Brophy Road and Botsford Road in Oceola Township around 9:48 p.m. July 13.
A witness on-scene said they were tending cattle when they found the body in a swampy area near Neff Lake. LCSO said the body appeared to be stuck in a knee-high mud hole.
LCSO said the body was found in a heavily wooded, marshy area, subject to “environmental conditions.” Officials were unable to positively identify the man right away, but suspect him to be Spaulding.
Spaulding, an avid walker, left his home the afternoon of July 5 to retrieve a shirt he’d lost in the woods, according to Livingston County Sheriff Mike Murphy. His sister, who called in the report, said Spaulding didn’t return to his home near Argentine Road, north of Brophy Road.
His disappearance sparked a days-long search by LCSO with assistance from search and rescue teams in Oakland and Lapeer.
Community members also joined the search, with an organized party at Riddle Cemetery on July 8. Residents were asked to stop organized searches after reports of trespassing and damaged crops, according to Murphy.
According to LCSO, the body showed no visible signs of a struggle or confrontation. It was taken to the University of Michigan Sparrow Hospital for medical examination and identification.
— Contact reporter Tess Ware at tware@livingstondaily.com.
This article originally appeared on Livingston Daily: LCSO: Body found in Oceola Township marsh thought to be missing man Jerry Spaulding
Reporting by Tess Ware, Livingston Daily / Livingston Daily
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