INDIAN RIVER COUNTY — The body of a missing 44-year-old man found on the Indian River Lagoon shoreline earlier this week was identified as James Thompson, sheriff’s officials said Wednesday. An autopsy was performed Tuesday and results are pending.
“Any time we can’t immediately determine how someone came to be in a location or what led to their death, we treat it as suspicious out of an abundance of caution while detectives work to establish the facts,” Lt. Kevin Jaworski, a spokesperson for the Indian River County Sheriff’s Office, previously said.
Thompson, who had previous addresses in Palm Bay, was missing for about 24 hours, said his mother Jody Thompson. James Thompson was staying at the Sebastian Sands Motel, just south of where his body was found near the Sebastian River Bridge, Jaworski said.
Two fishermen discovered the body lying face down about 2 p.m. Monday, July 6 along the shoreline near U.S. 1 and the southwest corner of the Sebastian River Bridge. Deputies responded to the scene and confirmed the man was dead.
“We used rapid ID fingerprint scanner to identify the man (at the scene),” Jaworski said. “Once we had an identification, detectives reached out to Palm Bay police.”
Jody Thompson said Indian River detectives reached out to Palm Bay police because her son had a Palm Bay police business card in his pocket.
Jaworski said Indian River deputies learned late Monday that Palm Bay police were working a missing person case. A missing person report was not generated because the mother, who lives in Micco, had already been notified of the death, deputies said.
Sheriff’s officials on Tuesday released audio from the 911 call capturing the shock of the men who stumbled upon the body.
Audio provided by Indian River County Sheriff’s Office
In the nearly three-minute audio, the fisherman described the body as belonging to a white male. The fisherman said it looked like the body had been at the site for a while.
There were no visible signs of trauma to the body, Jaworski said.
The body was taken to the medical examiner’s office. Jaworski said the toxicology from the autopsy can take a few weeks to be complete.
Anyone with information on the death should contact the sheriff’s office at 772-569-6700. Callers can remain anonymous and possibly be eligible for a cash reward by contacting Treasure Coast Crime Stoppers at 1-800-273-TIPS or tcwatch.org.
This story will be updated.
