Body found in marsh, believed to be missing Livingston County man
The remains of a man have been found in a swampy area in Livingston County, Michigan, and the body is believed to be an 83-year-old man who had been missing since July 5.
The Livingston County Sheriff's Office issued a press release Monday about the circumstances, adding that identification is pending. There were no visible signs of a struggle or confrontation, the report said.
Deputies got the call about 9:45 p.m. Sunday to the area of Brophy and Botsford Road in Oceola Township. The people who made the emergency call were tending to cattle in the area. Once officers arrived on the scene, they were directed to a heavily wooded, marshy area near Neff Lake where a man's body was seen in a knee-high mud hole.
The location where he was found is just over a half mile from the home of Jerry Spaulding, age 83, who was last seen on July 5.
The Livingston County Sheriff's Office after his whereabouts could not be confirmed and the family's 40-acre property along Argentine Road was searched extensively. The initial efforts included Oakland County Sheriff's Office Search and Rescue, Lapeer County Sheriff's Office Search and Rescue, Michigan Independent Search and Rescue and the Oakland County Sheriff's Office Aviation Unit.
Neighbors also kept a lookout and did some coordinated searches, but by July 9, Livingston County Sheriff Michael J. Murphy said "more than likely, it's going to be a recovery at this point" and asked that formal searches be halted.
Officers said they do suspect the man found is Spaulding, but "due to the condition of the body, a positive identification cannot be done at this time," Monday's report said.
The Howell Area Fire Department and the medical examiner's office are assisting on the investigation, and the remains were taken to the University of Michigan Sparrow Hospital.
