Bethlehem police have identified the male body found in a wooded area off Route 9W on Sunday, July 22.
According to police, the body was identified through his fingerprints as that of George W. Flannery Jr., 46. His family has been notified of his death, police said.
According to police, Flannery’s sister in West Virginia had reported her brother missing to Saratoga State Police in July of 2011. His last know contact with the family was in March. Police said Flannery had ties to West Virgina and the Capital District.
Two people who had passed the area on Sunday around 6:30 p.m. told police they discovered the body on Route 9W in a wooded area 30 feet from the road. The police then began conducting an investigation to figure out the identity of the body and his cause of death.
Flannery is believed to have been deceased for six months before his body was discovered, said police. He was found still wearing an extra large 2000 Giants Super Bowl sweatshirt, a green extra large tee shirt, jeans and a black leather Dockers belt. Police said the man was also wearing an analog watch with a black leather band, tan socks and black `Vans` sneakers, size 9.
What he was wearing helped police identify the body along with several tattoos on Flannery’s left bicep reading `George loves Linda` encircled in a heart and `TLA.` Police asked members of the community for information on the man’s identity based on those descriptions and Bethlehem Police Deputy Chief Timothy Beebe said the department received a number of calls.
`I would like to thank the members of the Bethlehem Police Department for their tireless efforts in this investigation,` said Beebe in a statement. `I also want to thank the New York State Police for their commitment of staff and resources to this case, our partners in Law Enforcement, as well as the media and the public for their cooperation and support that has brought us to this point, with almost unprecedented speed.`
The cause of death in Flannery’s case has been listed by the Albany County Coroner’s Office as `undetermined.` However, police believe there was no foul play involved because there was little trauma to the body.
