The Georgia Bureau of Investigation state crime lab has positively identified the body of a man found Sunday in the woods of North Georgia, according to reports.
Caleb Nathaniel Smith, 21, of Chatsworth was last seen alive about 2 a.m. Jan. 16, according to reports.
Family members discovered his car and belongings abandoned at a truck stop later that Thursday morning and called police.
Reports say the truck stop is at State Route 136 and Interstate 75 in Resaca, Georgia.
A search of Google maps shows the business at the location to be a Flying J Travel Center.
Officials with the Gordon County Sheriff’s Office searched the area with the help of drones for two days but were unable to find Smith.
Smith’s disappearance remained a mystery for more than two weeks before a resident came upon his remains Sunday, a little more than 3 miles west of where his car was discovered.
So far, officials have not said how Smith may have died in a quiet area of northwestern Gordon County, between the Sugar Valley and Hill City communities.
Detectives at the scene said there was nothing to indicate violence had occurred, according to reports.
While foul play is not suspected, an official cause of death has yet to be determined.
The Coosa Valley News reported Smith’s body was sent to the State Crime Laboratory in Decatur to undergo an autopsy. Investigators said they are specifically awaiting the resulting report on toxicology.
The area where Smith’s body was found is described as marshy and “heavily overgrown.” Some news accounts called it a “woodland area.”
Reports said fire officials responded earlier to a brushfire in the same area where the body was discovered, but there was no immediate indication the two cases were connected.
About the Author
