A body matching the description of a man reported missing in El Paso County on Thursday night, was pulled from Fountain Creek early this morning.
About 7:30 a.m., search crews spotted a body in the creek about 10 miles south of Colorado Springs, said Sgt. Mike Schaller, a spokesman for the El Paso County Sheriff’s Office.
Around 6:30 p.m. on Thursday, the father of 23-year-old Eugene Harris said his son left their Security home, near Security Boulevard and Hayes Drive. Harris told his father he was walking to a nearby Walmart store, Schaller said.
At 7 p.m., deputies received a call reporting that a man matching Harris’ description was seen walking into a swollen drainage culvert.
“They saw him walk into the culvert, but they didn’t see him walk out,” Schaller said.
About three hours after Harris left his home, his father filed a missing person report.
Crews searched Fountain Creek from the culvert to Fountain Creek Park. The search was called off for the night around 2 a.m.
The search resumed around 7 a.m. this morning.
Shortly after it began, someone spotted a body matching Harris’ physical and clothing description, about 2 miles down stream from the culvert.
The body was turned over to the El Paso County Coroner’s office, which will perform an autopsy to confirm the identity of the body.
Deputies will continue to investigate the case, but no foul play is suspected at this time, Schaller said.
Jordan Steffen: 303-954-1794 or jsteffen@denverpost.com
