The body of 72-year-old William Alfred Cole Jr. was found floating in the Wicomico River on Monday afternoon. (Photo: WBOC)SALISBURY, Md.- Salisbury police are investigating the discovery of an elderly man's body found floating in the Wicomico River near West Main Street on Monday afternoon.
According to police, at around 2:20 p.m. a witness discovered the body floating near a tugboat moored near the West Main Street Bridge. Police identified the body as that of 72-year-old William Alfred Cole Jr. of Salisbury. Police said Cole's body will be transported to the Office of the Chief Medical Examiner in Baltimore for an autopsy to determine the cause of death.
Freddie Rice of North Carolina said he made the call to police to report the discovery of the body. Rice said he was alarmed when he stepped out onto his tugboat deck.
"When I came out here to check the lines to make sure the lines were all right, I happened to see that body floating down there between the boat and the dock and I went in there and called 911," Rice said.
Anyone who may have seen Cole prior to 2:20 p.m. on Monday, July 2, is asked to contact the Salisbury Police Department at (410) 548-3165.
