VERO BEACH, Fla. — A body was found on Wednesday in an advanced stage of decomposition in Vero Beach, police said.
WATCH BELOW: Body found in bushes, now police search for answers
The Vero Beach Police Department said they are investigating the discovery of the deceased individual, which was found in the area of the 2000 block of Cove Drive just after noon. Police said they received a call from a pool maintenance employee at a home about a dead body.
WPTV reporter Cassandra Garcia was first on the scene and spoke to Vero Beach Police Chief David Currey about the discovery.
“Right now we have the medical examiner who arrived and they’re departing shortly," Currey told Garcia Wednesday afternoon. "We’re going to have an autopsy, hopefully tomorrow morning, and we also have to do some DNA testing.”
WPTV also spoke to a neighbor who said he was surprised to hear the news.
“I was shocked. I saw it was Cove Drive and I got in my car and just spun around here and I said, 'No, it can’t be here,'" Hugh McCrystal Jr. told Garcia. "And I’ll be darned, here they are. This doesn’t happen often."
The identity of the person has not been released.
WPTV reporter Zitlali Solache asked police if this investigation is connected the double-murder from March but they can't confirm because the body is severely decomposed. We also spoke with a housekeeper, who visited the scene.
“It was a major shocker," said Debbie Marino. “It’s kind of creepy and sad. Nothing like this really happens in Vero.”
Marino was notified about the investigation by the homeowner, who lives beside where the body was found.
“The last time I was here was about three weeks ago," said Marino. “I’m just blessed that today wasn’t a clean day and we discovered it.”
Police said at this time, the investigation remains active, and no additional information is being released pending further investigative efforts.
Stay with WPTV.com and WPTV News for more information as it becomes available.
