The discovery Monday of a man's body in a vehicle parked at a small city park in Winchester, Tenn., has triggered a homicide investigation and lots of questions.
The body, identified as 41-year-old Shelbyville, Tenn., resident Harvey Dwayne Harper, has been sent to Nashville for an autopsy, according to a statement on the Winchester Police Department Facebook page. But investigators have not released many other details.
Winchester police began investigating Harper's death as a homicide soon after the discovery of his body at Oak Street Park. He appeared to have suffered a gunshot wound.
Oak Street Park borders Boiling Fork Creek at the end of a narrow lane deep in an older residential neighborhood near downtown Winchester. Oak Street dead-ends into the entrance to the small park, and there are no signs leading to it or on the park property identifying it. Boiling Fork Creek flows west eventually becoming part of the Tims Ford Reservoir.
Tennessee Bureau of Investigation officials said Tuesday that the state agency has not been asked to assist in the investigation.
Twelfth Judicial District Attorney General Mike Taylor said the police department will take the vehicle in which Harper's body was found, an older model Audi, to the TBI Crime Lab in Nashville for analysis. Taylor said the car belongs to a friend of Harper's who lives in Tullahoma.
Winchester authorities "are running down witnesses and interviewing everybody they can right now," Taylor said. "We got an autopsy scheduled for [Wednesday] in Nashville."
Harper was from Texas and had ties to the Coffee County-Tullahoma area, as well as Louisiana. Harper's mother lives in the Nashville area, Taylor said. Harper is thought to have been in the Franklin County area for about a year.
No weapon has been found thus far, and it's uncertain how long Harper's body had been at the park.
"They were getting conflicting reports on when the car had been seen and that's one of the things they're trying to figure out," Taylor said.
Police have no suspects yet, he said.
Anyone with information about the crime is asked to call Winchester Police Department detectives at 931-967-3840. After 4:30 p.m. CDT, call the Franklin County Consolidated Communications at 931-967-2331.
Contact staff writer Ben Benton at bbenton@timesfreepress.com or 423-757-6569. Follow him on Twitter @BenBenton or at www.facebook.com/benbenton1.