The body of a deceased male found on the side of Hull Road in Mansfield around 9:30 a.m. on Saturday, April 5 has been identified.
As of Monday morning, the Richland County Coroner’s Office identified the deceased as 29-year-old Michael D. Mitchel of Mansfield. Mitchel’s body was discovered in the 600 block of Hull Road Saturday morning. A report from the Richland County Sheriff’s Office indicates drug use is suspected.
After the initial call in reference to a possible deceased person made by a 76-year-old male witness, Madison EMS and the Richland County Sheriff’s Office responded to the scene Saturday morning. The witness’s report states he noticed what looked like a “mannequin” lying by a power pole off the road.
The Sheriff’s Office report states that Mitchel, the deceased, was lying on his right side next to a telephone pole with his shirt up and his pants down around his knees. The victim was cyanotic (discolored) in his face, and rigor mortis was not present as the victim still had a warm internal temperature with an external temperature of 53 degrees. The victim also had a scratch mark in the center of his back, though the coroner’s office advised the scratch occurred post-mortem due to the fact there was no blood present.
According to the report, upon further observation of the scene it appeared there was some disturbance with the ground vegetation surrounding the victim appearing that someone had walked around the area in the immediate vicinity, though there were no clear footprints. Also noted at the scene were muddy tire tracks coming from a pull-off that goes to a field.
The report states coroner’s investigator Bob Ball located an Ohio Direction card in Mitchel’s rear pants pocket. The card had the name of a woman incarcerated in the Richland County Jail, with visitor information showing she only had one visitor, listed as her boyfriend. The boyfriend was also incarcerated at the Richland County Jail, and a check through LEADS showed both the woman and her boyfriend had active warrants.
A tattoo was located on the right forearm of Mitchel’s body of a praying figure without a face. Corrections staff described the tattoo of the woman’s boyfriend to the Sheriff’s Office, and the description matched that of Mitchel’s tattoo.
Due to the suspicious circumstances surrounding the case, the Bureau of Criminal Investigation assumed responsibility of the scene. Once the investigation paperwork was compiled, the case was turned over to the Major Crimes unit of the Sheriff’s Office.
According to Major Joe Masi of the Sheriff’s Office, Mitchel’s body has been transported to Summit County for an autopsy and Major Crimes detectives continue to investigate. No comment was made on the official cause of death, and no further information will be released at this time.
The Richland County Coroner’s Office was unavailable for comment as of press time.