Homicide ruled out after man found dead in manure pile in Sacramento County, sheriff says
Detectives are no longer investigating homicide after a man was found dead in a manure pile at a south Sacramento County dairy farm last week, with sheriff’s officials saying the coroner’s office has ruled out foul play.
Sacramento County Sheriff’s Office spokeswoman Sgt. Tess Deterding confirmed Friday that an autopsy “ruled out foul play” in the death. The body was found Jan. 22 by a worker at B&J’s Dairy in the 9900 block of Arno Road along Highway 99, between Elk Grove and Galt, and reported the death to authorities about 10 a.m. that day.
Deterding said last week that the body had been found during the dairy farm’s normal operations, as workers were turning manure and water as part of the aeration process.
Due to the circumstances, the death was initially classified as suspicious and the investigation was taken over by homicide detectives, according to Deterding. It was not clear how long the man’s body had been in the pile, but the body did not have any signs of apparent trauma, she said.
The Sacramento County Coroner’s Office is now handling the case, and has identified the victim as Lawrence Provost, 65, of Oakland.
This story was originally published January 31, 2020 at 8:42 AM.
