Fisherman finds body in lake; cause of man's death unknown

nvestigators including Pulaksi County Chief Deputy Coroner Gerone Hobbs (left) make their way Tuesday afternoon to an area in a pond on Matt Road where a body was found.
nvestigators including Pulaksi County Chief Deputy Coroner Gerone Hobbs (left) make their way Tuesday afternoon to an area in a pond on Matt Road where a body was found.

— Authorities on Tuesday were investigating the death of a man whose body was found floating in a lake near North Little Rock but had not determined whether his death was a homicide, an accident or by natural causes.

A fisherman in a boat found the body in the lake near Calm Lane and Matt Road, north of Prothro Junction, about 2:30 p.m.

The body appeared to be that of a young black man, Pulaski County Coroner Garland Camper said, and was taken to the Arkansas State Crime Laboratory to determine the man's identity and cause of death.

Ronald Walton, a 42-year-old construction worker from North Little Rock, said he was working on a nearby house when the fisherman drove up and asked if he had a cell phone.

"He said, 'I believe there's a body in the water,'" Walton said.

Walton went to the lake to look for himself, he said, and he saw the body of naked man floating on the surface of the water.

"I got sick to my stomach," Walton said.

Camper and Pulaski County sheriff's office spokesman John Rehrauer declined to say whether the body was clothed or if it had any obvious signs of injury. The man appeared to have been dead for at least a few days, Rehrauer said.

Sheriff's deputies frequently make arrests for prostitution and drug offenses at the end of Calm Lane, not far from where the body was found, he said.

"Right now it's a 'whodunit,'" Rehrauer said. "We don't even know if it's a homicide."

Arkansas, Pages 13 on 08/26/2009

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