Body found near Gwinnett interstate identified

A body found last week along I-85 in Gwinnett County has been identified as a Stone Mountain man who was struck by a vehicle nearly two weeks earlier.

Gwinnett police Cpl. Ed Ritter said Thursday that a county Corrections work detail was cleaning debris off Dawson Boulevard and Graves Road near the interstate on Jan. 23 when they discovered 24-year-old Leviticus D. Charleston’s body. The body was next to a concrete barrier near a small ravine and could not be seen from I-85, Ritter said.

Ritter said that just after 10 p.m. on Jan. 11, Gwinnett police received calls about a man walking northbound on I-85 along the center concrete median and walking into traffic between Pleasantdale Road and Jimmy Carter Boulevard.

“Another caller stated that a pedestrian was struck by a vehicle in that area,” Ritter said in an e-mail. Police and firefighters searched the area but nothing was found at the time, Ritter said.

“Based on the clothing and physical description, along with decomposition, investigators believe that Mr. Charleston died on the scene from injuries sustained after being struck by a vehicle on Jan. 11,” Ritter said.

“Investigators have spoken with witnesses from Jan. 11 and are looking for anyone else that can provide additional information leading to the identity of the driver and vehicle that struck Mr. Charleston as well as any other information regarding the accident,” Ritter said. He asked that anyone with such information call Det. T.P. Corradino at 678-442-5624.