Police seek ID, cause of death for body found Monday in Poplar Bluff

POPLAR BLUFF, Mo. -- An autopsy was planned Tuesday for the badly decomposed body found Monday afternoon in a wooded area behind Poplar Bluff Junior High School.

At 3:35 p.m., a school maintenance worker, who was "outside smoking a cigarette, enjoying the afternoon, walked up on the body in a wooded area between the junior high and [U.S. Forest Service]," explained Poplar Bluff deputy chief Jeff Rolland.

The worker, Rolland said, went and got school resource officers Jason Courtney and Andy Cleaveland.

"Due to the advanced state of decomposition, the maintenance worker was unsure of what he found," Rolland said. "The school resource officer was able to determine [the body] was of the human nature."

At that point, Rolland said, the area was secured and detectives from the department's Criminal Investigation Division were notified.

"We contacted the [Missouri State] Highway Patrol, who had a couple of their investigators here within 20 minutes at our request in case we found something that looked suspicious," chief Danny Whiteley said.

The scene was processed, according to Rolland, and the body was removed by Butler County Coroner Jim Akers.

"We have a tentative [identification]," Akers said.

The body is believed to be that of a man, said Akers, who indicated authorities found identification on the body; however, they have not been able to confirm that the ID belongs to the body because of the state of decomposition.

A dead dog, Akers said, also was found next to the body.

Rolland said a backpack found near the body was taken for processing, and its contents were not known at press time.

If the body is who authorities believe it is, Akers and Rolland said, the last documented contact with a law enforcement entity was in early to mid-July.

"We know an employee of the Forest Service spoke with the guy; we think it is back" in July, Akers said. " … The state of decomposition is looking like he could have been there three or four weeks."

At that point, Akers said, no obvious signs were found as to the cause of death.

"We did some preliminary X-rays" Monday night, and no signs of foul play, such as a bullet, were found in the body, Akers said,

"All indicators are leaning toward a nonviolent death," Akers said.

Akers said he had scheduled an autopsy to be performed Tuesday by Dr. Russell Deidiker at Mineral Area Regional Medical Center in Farmington, Missouri.

Because the body is "so badly decomposed, I don't know if that [the autopsy] will be much help," Akers said.

Rolland said officers are awaiting the results of the autopsy, as well as "trying to establish an identification of the individual and notify next of kin."