FORT WAYNE – A young man’s body was discovered Tuesday morning in the backyard of a boarded-up house near Weisser Park, Fort Wayne police said.
Someone found the body in the middle of the yard at 2935 Weisser Park Ave., north of Colerick Street, and 911 dispatchers were alerted at about 11:20 a.m.
The body “did not appear to be concealed,” said Sgt. Mark Brooks, a police spokesman. “It was just lying in a grassy area of the yard.”
The victim had significant injuries, Brooks said, declining to elaborate. The results of an autopsy and the victim’s identity are expected to be released today.
“It’s definitely suspicious, and I think we’ll know more after the autopsy,” he said.
Jeffrey Kuhn, 47, lives across the street from where the body was found. He said he usually cuts through the yard every day.
“Just ironically, the last few days, I didn’t walk through there or I would have walked right up on him,” he said.
Kuhn said the property has been vacant for five years. Two other homes on the block are boarded up, but he said those are being renovated.
Property records show the house, a gray two-story, is owned by Genesis Outreach Inc., a group that provides housing and other assistance. However, Brooks said the house apparently did not play a role in the man’s death.
Brooks could not say when the man died but said the body was not significantly decomposed. He had no information to release about suspects or a motive in the case.
Whether the man died in the yard or whether he was dumped there was not clear. Brooks said no weapons were found at the scene.
James Hardy, 48, has lived on the block for 13 years. He said Tuesday’s discovery left him and his neighbors in shock.
“We need to come up with a solution and stop this violence. It’s sad,” he said. “It’s nonsense violence.”
