The Fulton Police Department worked Thursday to identify the body of a homeless man found in a vacant lot near 101 E. Tenth St.
"We were called to the area in reference to a suspicious incident, and upon investigation we discovered the body of a homeless man," FPD Lt. Andre Cook said Thursday afternoon. "We believe we know (who it is) but his identity is being withheld pending identification and notification of next of kin."
Cook said because the location the body was found does not receive heavy traffic - officers had to carefully move branches around the body as they inspected the area of dense shrubs - it is unclear how long he had been there.
"We just don't know," he said.
Dori Burke, a forensic investigator with the Boone County Medical Examiner's Office, said she could not be more specific either.
"He's been there for a little bit; the body is partially decomposed, but we don't know yet," Burke said, noting it will be today or Saturday before the autopsy is performed.
She estimated his age to be early 40s.
Cook said there were no signs of foul play at the scene, an assessment Burke confirmed.
"At this point nothing looks suspicious, it all looks natural," she said, adding that could change once the autopsy is performed.
The Fulton police are continuing the investigation.