Fishermen find body of driver who went missing from crash 8 days earlier, TN cops say

A body pulled from the Cumberland River in Tennessee has been linked to a car crash that happened more than a mile away, according to investigators in Nashville.

How the man ended up in the water has not been explained, but the wreck happened near Whites Creek, which intersects the river, maps show.

The discovery was made Sunday, Oct. 6, by a father and son fishing from a boat, and they called 911, the Metropolitan Nashville Police Department reported in a news release.

A fingerprint analysis revealed the man to be Christopher Kelley, 36, who was reported missing Oct. 1 by his family in Mt. Juliet, officials said. Mt. Juliet is about a 20-mile drive east from Nashville.

“Kelley is believed to have been involved in a single-car rollover crash on Briley Parkway near County Hospital Road on September 29,” police said. “When officers arrived, the vehicle was unoccupied.”

His body showed “no obvious signs of trauma.” A cause of death is to be determined by the medical examiner’s office, officials said.

Investigators have not released details of what caused the Sept. 29 crash.

This story was originally published October 9, 2024 at 7:15 AM with the headline "Fishermen find body of driver who went missing from crash 8 days earlier, TN cops say."