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No ID of body found in Greene

2 min read

WAYNESBURG – State police are still trying to identify the body of a man found in Franklin Township last week.

State police Sgt. Steven Dowlin said an autopsy was conducted Saturday to determine how the man died. He declined to comment Tuesday on the cause of death or if investigators suspect foul play.

“We try to confirm (the identity) as soon as possible,” Dowlin said. “But we have to do a few extra steps (in this case).”

Children riding all-terrain vehicles in a wooded area near the Bortz car dealership along Route 21 discovered the man’s decomposing body about 6 p.m.

The body was found in a secluded area far behind the car dealership and just a couple hundred feet from where the car of John Raikes, 57, of Fairmont, W.Va., was discovered in late June. His car was spotted in the Econo Lodge parking lot at 126 Millers Lane on June 27, although investigators found no evidence that would pinpoint his location. Raikes was last seen June 20 at his Fairmont home, police in West Virginia previously said.

Dowlin would not say if investigators think the body found Friday is that of Raikes.

Greene County District Attorney Marjorie Fox declined to comment on the case and deferred questions to state police.

Investigators also declined to say if the situation in Greene County could be connected to a body found in Bretz, W.Va., in late June, although authorities in both states said they’re not coordinating on the two investigations.

West Virginia State Police at the detachment in Preston County said Tuesday the lower half of a body found there matches the clothing description of 41-year-old Isaac Felton, who went missing from his Bretz home April 11. West Virginia Trooper J.T. Wood said they’re treating that case as a homicide investigation.

Wood said they found Felton’s identification in the pants pocket on the body, although investigators are waiting for the DNA analysis by the state medical examiner’s office in Charleston, W.Va., to confirm that man’s identity.

Felton was seen buying a prepaid phone card at a gas station in Mt. Morris just days before he disappeared.

Troopers in West Virginia said Felton periodically traveled to Pittsburgh, although there is no indication he was heading that way when he disappeared. Felton’s hometown of Bretz is about 20 miles southeast of Mt. Morris.

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