Body found in lake near Great Smoky Mountains prompts investigation, NC cops say
Two anglers staked out at a lake near the Great Smoky Mountains were scanning the water when they noticed something floating in the lake, deputies in North Carolina told the Citizen Times.
It turned out to be a body, the Swain County Sheriff’s Office said in a statement on Facebook.
Deputies responded to the report of the body on May 13, the sheriff’s office said. The deceased person was found in Fontana Lake at the Wilderness Marina near the Greasy Branch area, according to the sheriff’s office.
“An autopsy is scheduled this week to help determine the cause of death,” the sheriff’s office said. “There is no further information to disclose at this time. There is no known threat to the community.”
Fontana Lake is located on the southern border of the Great Smoky Mountains National Park in North Carolina, according to the National Park Service.
“The body was found by two people fishing at the marina about 12:30 Saturday afternoon,” Sheriff Curtis Cochran told the Citizen Times. Along with the body was a wallet with a man’s identification, the sheriff told the news outlet.
The sheriff’s office said it does not believe the body belongs to a man previously reported missing in the park.
Gordon Kaye of Tampa, Florida, was reported missing on April 26 after he was last seen April 23 on the North Carolina side of the park, McClatchy News previously reported. A park spokesperson told The Citizen Times that the search for Gordon Kaye was not connected to the discovery of the body.
Fontana Lake is about 95 miles southwest of Asheville.
This story was originally published May 16, 2023 at 3:10 PM with the headline "Body found in lake near Great Smoky Mountains prompts investigation, NC cops say."
