Missing person found dead in vehicle

Staff Reports News-Herald.net

A Lenoir City man who has been missing since Sunday was found dead after his 2011 Ford Escape flipped over into a stream off City Park Drive.

William David Smith, 58, was located by a passer-by about 3:45 p.m. Thursday, Lenoir City Police Chief Don White said.

Police did not know how the vehicle ended up in the stream, White said.

Smith was believed to have been susceptible to seizures and left home without his medication, according to information from Loudon County Sheriff's Office.

The body was transported to Fort Loudoun Medical Center, and police called a wrecker service to tow the vehicle out of the water. LCSO personnel helped at the scene.
 
During a follow-up interview, White said Loudon County Sheriff's Inv. Jeff Russell and others were in the vicinity looking for Smith when they got a clue to help narrow the search.
 
"Part of his investigation did show a cellphone pinged back to a tower in that area," White said, noting that the pingback ultimately led to Smith's discovery.
 
As of Friday afternoon, police did not have results from the preliminary autopsy report.

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7/18/16