Authorities are working to identify a body found floating in a lake in a Gwinnett County neighborhood Wednesday night.
The body of a man was recovered from Lake Carlton near Loganville after neighbors spotted it about 8:15 p.m. Decomposition has made identification difficult, Gwinnett police spokesman Sgt. Jake Smith said.
The autopsy Thursday afternoon was not able to immediately identify the body, Smith said in a news release. Further tests are being completed, but the results will not be available Thursday, he said.
The discovery of the body came a day after relatives reported a recent UGA graduate disappeared Monday night following his shift at a Publix pharmacy. Loganville police are leading the search for Alvin Ahmed, who family members believe was abducted from the grocery store parking lot on U.S. 78.
MORE: 'Forcibly taken away': UGA grad missing in Loganville, believed to be abducted
Police said detectives are aware of Ahmed’s case, but they have not made a positive link between his disappearance and the body found in the lake.
“On the surface, it seems like it could be the same person,” Smith said during a Thursday morning briefing outside at Lake Carlton. “We don’t have anything to actually tie those two cases together.”
Smith said investigators aren’t sure how long the body was in the lake before swift water rescue firefighters pulled it out using a boat.
“In speaking with homicide investigators, the level of decomposition they found could potentially match the time frame for Loganville’s missing person case,” he said.
Credit: Facebook
Credit: Facebook
Investigators are not confirming any injuries to the body until the autopsy is performed and a cause of death is determined. They are considering all options and have not ruled the case a homicide, Smith said.
Kalvin Ahmed said his family is still searching for his brother and relatives hope to find him unharmed.
“A million things are racing through my mind about the body found last night, but as far as we know, nothing has been confirmed yet,” Kalvin Ahmed said on Alvin Ahmed’s public Facebook page. “... my heart is aching at the thought and I can barely type but we're still keeping hope.”
Investigators returned to the lake Thursday morning to better canvass the area. They still have not established a scene or a definite point the man entered the water, Smith said.
Police are asking anyone with information on the Lake Carlton case to contact the Gwinnett County Police Department at 770-513-5300.
Tipsters can remain anonymous, and be eligible for rewards of up to $2,000, by contacting Crime Stoppers at 404-577-8477, texting information to 274637 or visiting Crime Stoppers' website.
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