MYRTLE — The body of a man reported missing last week in north Mississippi has been found.
Police discovered the body of David McGill Jr., 44, of New Albany, on Monday in woods near County Road 14 in Myrtle. McGill was reported missing on Friday.
Although investigators will await the results of an autopsy to determine a cause of death, they believe McGill may have died from hypothermia.
“It had been very cold,” Union County Sheriff Jimmy Edwards said, the Northeast Mississippi Daily Journal reported.
McGill was last seen around 9 p.m. He was reportedly wearing a leather jacket at the time, which law enforcement officials say may not have provided sufficient protection against the cold.
Edwards said crews began searching for McGill on Sunday, performing both an aerial and ground search of the area.
Edwards said searchers found McGill’s car at 10:30 a.m. Monday, about 18 miles from where he was last reported being seen. The sheriff said they found the man’s body around 6:30 p.m. that same day, roughly a quarter-mile from his car and about 75 yards off the road.
Edwards said McGill was known for sometimes riding and walking around the area, citing that as a possible explanation for why he was in that location. Relatives said McGill suffered from a unspecified medical condition that might have impaired his judgment. The sheriff, however, declined to speculate on whether McGill may have become disoriented or lost.
