THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1997, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Friday, January 31, 1997 TAG: 9701310545
SECTION: LOCAL PAGE: B1 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY SUSIE STOUGHTON, STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: SUFFOLK LENGTH: 31 lines
A man's body was found Thursday in a wooded area of the Tidewater Community College campus off College Drive. Suffolk police are investigating the death as the city's first homicide of 1997.
Police had not identified the man by Thursday evening, spokesman Mike Simpkins said. He was described as white, possibly in his 40s, 5 feet 10, about 180 pounds, with dark hair. He was wearing blue jeans, a dark jacket and tennis shoes and had no identification.
A man walking along a path near the Nansemond River at the edge of the campus spotted the body about noon, 20 or 30 feet into the woods, Simpkins said.
The path - behind the school's classroom building - is blocked to vehicles by a fence. But it is frequently used for walking or jogging.
TCC officials said security guards and Suffolk police routinely patrol the campus, which is near the Portsmouth border in northern Suffolk and is referred to as the Portsmouth campus.
``There's an adequate presence of security and the campus is well lit,'' said Bill Candler, director of communications for TCC. Candler said the discovery of the body caused little disruption Thursday.
Police do not believe the body had been there more than 48 hours. They would not comment on wounds or other details. The body was sent to the state medical examiner's office for an autopsy.
KEYWORDS: SUFFOLK POLICE MURDER UNIDENTIFIED BODY