Human remains found Dec. 8 at a home in rural Marion County have been identified as a Griffin, Georgia, man, according to the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation.
The body found on private property along Sequatchie Mountain Road now has a name, Matthew Frazier, 41, agency spokesperson Mariah Dunlop said in an email.
“At this time, the investigation into the manner and cause of death remains active and ongoing,” Dunlop said.
Steve Strain, assistant district attorney, said the circumstances of Frazier’s death are still being determined, but it is believed to be a homicide.
“He does not show up in a missing persons database,” Strain said by phone. “There was no missing person report filed on him. We haven’t had any contact with his family.”
(READ MORE: State identifies three found dead in Marion County home)
Strain said he was unaware of whether the TBI made contact with Frazier’s family, but the release of Frazier’s name by the state agency would seem to affirm the family is aware of his death.
A resident on Sequatchie Mountain Road found the remains and reported the discovery to authorities, Marion County Sheriff Ronnie “Bo” Burnett said in a Dec. 10 phone call. Burnett said the landowner was walking through his property when he found the remains and called authorities.
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“The body had been out there for some period of time, but it wasn’t skeletal,” Strain said on Dec. 10.
More information will be released as the investigation continues, Strain and Dunlop said.
Contact Southeast Tennessee reporter Ben Benton at bbenton@timesfreepress.com or 423-757-6569.