One of two bodies, found on Tuesday afternoon in Canton, is placed in a Cherokee County Fire and Emergency Services transport vehicle. The bodies of two Hispanic men were found behind a shopping center on Marietta Road south of Hickory Flat Highway/Highway 140. Police said there were no obvious signs of foul play, but the bodies have been transported to the GBI Crime Lab for examination and identification.
Photo by Thinh D. Nguyen
Photo by Thinh D. Nguyen
Dispatch received a call shortly before 3 p.m. from a caller reporting the bodies of two Hispanic men were in a wooded area that slopes behind a shopping center on Marietta Road just south of the Hickory Flat Highway/Highway 140 intersection.
The Harmon Center in the 550 block includes numerous businesses that cater to Canton's Hispanic community as well as the Habitat For Humanity ReStore.
One of the men has been identified, but police have not released his name pending family notification. He is a 39-year-old man from Guatemala.
The other man, who also appears to be a Hispanic adult, has not yet been indentified as he had no ID on his person, Public Information Officer Detective German Rivas said.
Lt. Jeff Hall said there's no apparent cause of death or signs of foul play, and it's unclear how long both bodies have been there.
County Coroner Earl Darby said both bodies will be sent to the GBI Crime Lab in Tucker for an autopsy. He said he expects to receive the results by the end of the week.
Hall said the department is checking its database to see if there are any missing persons reports that match the description of the unidentified man, but said he's unaware of any reports.
Investigators also are interviewing people who were at the scene to see if they have an idea who the man is as well as what may have happened to both. The department also is working to track down the 911 caller who reported the findings.
According to Cherokee 911 dispatch reports broadcast to the police, the caller said the bodies had been in the location for some time and gave a nickname possibly used by one of the men.
Seli Ramirez, a manager at the Ramirez Carniceria grocery store in the shopping center, said she didn't notice any unusual activity behind her store in the past few weeks. She said she also never has had a problem with people loitering.
Anyone with information is asked to call the police at (770) 720-4883.
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