A man reported missing over a year ago was found dead inside a barrel, California police said.
Eric Gregory, who was reported missing in December 2021, was last seen by a family friend near a Home Depot in East Oakland, the Oakland Police Department said in a January video statement.
A body was found on April 10 in Castro Valley within an unincorporated area of Alameda County, about 15 miles away from where Gregory was last seen, Oakland police said in an emailed news release to News on Thursday, May 4.
The Alameda County Sheriff’s Office identified the body as Gregory’s on April 19, police said.
An autopsy for Gregory, who was 45 when he disappeared, is pending, The East Bay Times reported.
Police told the press Gregory’s body had “significant trauma.“
His death is being investigated as a homicide, according to police.
Anyone with information about Gregory’s disappearance or death is asked to contact police at 510-238-3821.