PORT ANGELES — Clallam County sheriff’s deputies have identified the body of a man found in the Lyre River as that of 50-year-old Port Angeles resident James W. Hopkins.
Deputies do not suspect foul play was a factor in Hopkins’ death, said Ron Cameron, Clallam County chief criminal deputy, though a cause of death has not yet been determined.
An autopsy was scheduled for Tuesday.
Friends of Hopkins’ reported him missing from the Lyre River Campground the weekend of Sept. 8, Cameron said.
That triggered an unsuccessful search by sheriff’s deputies and Clallam County Search and Rescue.
After receiving a report of a body in the Lyre River, deputies found Hopkins’ body last Friday.
Hopkins’ body was found in a log jam directly below the state Highway 112 bridge over the river, about 5 miles west of Joyce, Cameron said.
Clallam County Search and Rescue responded to help in recovery of the body.
The next day, Clallam County Search and Rescue crews found a wallet and clothes belonging to Hopkins along the river bank in some thick brush.
Deputies told Hopkins’ family of his death Monday, Cameron said, though Cameron did not know which of Hopkins’ family members were contacted.
Although the body was seriously decomposed when deputies found it Friday afternoon, Cameron said, deputies did not see any outward signs to suggest foul play.
Hopkins was reported missing a week after he was last seen, deputies said Monday.
Reporter Jeremy Schwartz can be reached at 360-452-2345, ext. 5074, or at jschwartz@peninsuladailynews.com.