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UPDATE

Greenville Police Chief Justin Lovvorn just confirmed that the body found this week is in fact Donald Gulley. Lovvorn said yesterday that Gulley’s death appears to be a suicide.

“The cause of death has not been confirmed yet by the department of forensics so we can’t say yet. What I can tell you is a small caliber handgun belonging to Mr. Gulley was found with the body,” Lovvorn said when asked why suicide is suspected.

Read the full story below:

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Greenville Police are investigating a dead body located near some train tracks in Greenville and believe it may be Indiana native Donald Gulley, who disappeared last month after visiting a local auto repair shop. Greenville police discovered the body during an aerial search Feb. 1.

The Greenville Police Department became aware of Gulley’s disappearance after Morgan County Indiana Law Enforcement contacted Greenville PD on January 12, believing Gulley travelled through the Greenville area on his way back to Indiana from Florida.

Although a final determination has not been made, Greenville Police Chief Justin Lovvorn said the body is believed to be that of Gulley.

“The description of the body does match that of Mr. Donald Gulley, however we are waiting for a positive identification after an autopsy has been completed before we can confirm,” Lovvorn said. “Mr. Gulley’s relatives have been made aware of the new developments and they will be the first to be notified if a positive identification is made.”

Although not confirmed, authorities believe the manner of death to be suicide.

“The evidence collected at the scene indicates that the manner of death is a suicide,” Lovvorn said. We will also wait for the autopsy results before confirming the manner of death, and we will treat the death investigation as a criminal case until a final determination has been made.”

Lovvorn said investigators began looking into Gulley’s disappearance and found out his vehicle was towed by a local wrecker company after breaking down on I-65 outside of Greenville.

“Investigators spoke to the repair shop where the car was taken and found out that Mr. Gulley had come into the business the day after his car was towed there and talked about the repairs that would be needed,” Lovvorn said. “They stated that he talked to someone on his cell phone and walked out of the business without making arrangements to repair his car. They were unsure where he went after that, but stated that he did not return.”

After asking surrounding businesses for information and surveillance footage, investigators were unable to develop any further leads, partly due to the amount of time between Gulley being in the area and when he was reported missing to the Greenville PD. A statewide missing person alert for Gulley was issued which yielded several alerts, but none were successful in locating him.

Lovvorn said a request for a drone team was made to the State Bureau of Investigations, which led to the body being found Feb. 1.

“Greenville PD investigators met with the drone operators from SBI that morning and after an aerial search of the area, they located what appeared to be a body in a wooded area near the train tracks within a few hundred yards from the repair shop where Mr. Gulley was last seen,” Lovvorn said.