CALLAHAN, Fla. – A body was found Wednesday in a pond in Nassau County, authorities said.
The Nassau County Sheriff’s Office said a call came in around 9 a.m. Wednesday about the body of a man in a pond next to an old chicken barn off of Old Dixie Highway near Bethel Church Road. The Sheriff’s Office said a vehicle was also parked next to the pond.
The Sheriff’s Office dive team worked Wednesday to recover the body, which Sheriff Bill Leeper said appeared to have been there for a few days.
“At this point, we don’t suspect foul play,” Leeper said. “We have to wait to get the cause of death from the ME (medical examiner) to determine where we go from here.”
The sheriff said they’re trying to determine who owns the vehicle that was abandoned.
This is the pond where a body was discovered this AM. Behind the barn was an abandoned vehicle. The family of a missing Nassau County man fears it’s their loved one, Carl Newsome who was reported missing June 14, but was last seen leaving for work June 13. No official ID. @wjxt4 pic.twitter.com/V7SukTJolg
— Zachery Lashway (@ZachLashway) June 16, 2021
The sister of 35-year-old Carl Newsome, a missing Nassau County man, told News4Jax she’s terrified the body could be that of her brother.
“I am terrified that’s him. Terrified,” said Kelly Bohacik, Newsome’s sister. “The reason I say that is it is the route he would have taken to work from where he lives.”
Newsome was reported missing Monday after the father of two was last seen about 5 a.m. Sunday leaving for work.
“He was very hardworking, never missed work,” Bohacik said. “He was a family man. He loved his son and his daughter, his children. He was just a fun, loving guy when you were around him.”
An employee of BAE Systems in Mayport for several years, Newsome was promoted to crane operator in February, Bohacik said.
“Just please, please, let us know that he is OK, that you’re OK,” Bohacik said. “Buddy, that was his nickname. That is what we called him, the family. He is known as Buddy to us. If you’re out there Buddy, boy, you better call us if you’re out there.”