The body of a McComb man reported missing Wednesday was found in the Bogue Chitto River on Thursday evening, a possible homicide victim.
Pike County Coroner Percy Pittman pronounced Cort Gatlin, 29, 809 Avenue E, dead at the scene near Alford Bridge north of Summit. Young’s Funeral Home of Summit is in charge of funeral arrangements.
McComb police received a missing person report about Gatlin at 8 p.m. Wednesday, said detective Shannon Sullivan. Gatlin was last seen Sunday or Monday, he said.
At 5:15 p.m. Thursday, police received information that led them to Alford Bridge, Sullivan said.
Sullivan and fellow detectives Sid Boyte and Victoria Carter walked down the east side of the river and spotted the body on the west side at 5:51.
“We saw the body in the water 100 yards south of Alford Bridge on Alford Bridge Road,” Sullivan said at the scene last night, swatting mosquitoes while blue, red and white lights flashed in the hot rural darkness.
He notified the sheriff’s department since the location was outside city limits. Landowner Jason Jones got a key to a gate for better access to the river.
A county rescue boat was too big, but Summit volunteer fireman Kyle Brooks, who lives nearby, provided a 14-foot bateau with trolling motor.
Meanwhile, McComb Fire Chief Stephen Adams happened to drive by and joined in with the recovery.
“We used our property to get access to that sandbar down there that we were on,” said Jones, who is also an assistant coroner.
“The best situation was to use the boat, launch off that sandbar, and just down the river in the next curve was the best way to remove the body. It was too deep to use waders,” Jones said.
Jones, Brooks, Adams and sheriff’s detectives Chris Bell and Keyanna Martin recovered the body. It was 8 p.m. when they slid the body into the rear of a white Young’s Funeral Home hearse.
The body was taken to Young’s Funeral Home and later identified as Gatlin.
The body reported showed signs of blunt force trauma to the top of the head, but chief sheriff’s investigator Greg Martin said the cause of death has yet to be determined.
“We don’t know yet,” he said this morning. “The body is being transferred to the medical examiner’s office in Jackson for an autopsy.”
Martin could not confirm whether Gatlin had been shot.
“Until the autopsy report actually identifies the projectile that entered the body, we just don’t know,” Martin said. “Several people were questioned last night, but there are no formal charges at this time.
“It is a possibility kidnapping could be involved, murder could be involved, a number of things,” Martin said. “Persons of interest are being interviewed.”
McComb police and the Pike County Sheriff’s Department are working the case together since Gatlin was reported missing in the city and his body was found in the county.
Sullivan called the cooperation between the two departments “outstanding.”
“We worked well together in a time of need,” Sullivan said this morning. “It showed from yesterday how well law enforcement can work together and get the results needed.”
He also thanked Fire Chief Adams for his involvement. “We all worked together,” Sullivan said.
After police got the missing person report Wednesday night, they interviewed numerous people who had seen Gatlin recently.
Around midnight Wednesday, Summit police got a tip to look at Lake Dixie Springs, but a search there turned up nothing.
“It was rumor,” Sullivan said. “For each rumor that is spread, we have to follow all the rumors until we can tell which rumor is not the truth and which rumor is going to be the truth.”
Thursday evening police received a more reliable report.
“After 5 p.m. we finally got a break in the case and were told that we need to look around Alford’s Bridge,” Sullivan said.
