Police: Body 'John Doe' found on bank of Schuylkill River along Kelly Drive
Philadelphia police said Sunday that the body of a white male was found at 1:18 p.m. Sunday on the bank of the Schuylkill River in the 4400 block of Kelly Drive.
Philadelphia police said Sunday that the body of a white male was found at 1:18 p.m. Sunday on the bank of the Schuylkill River in the 4400 block of Kelly Drive.
The man, identified as "John Doe," was found caught in a tree line on the river bank by Greater Philadelphia Search and Rescue. The scene was held, police said.
Police said they would not likely release on Sunday the identity of the person found.
The discovery has raised questions that it could be that of a missing Bucks County teacher, Christopher Tully, 40. But police emphasize there are others missing in the area besides Tully and that no name will be released until after any family members are notified and an autopsy is conducted.
Tully's brother, Edward Tully, reached by telephone Sunday afternoon, said the family has not had any notification. "I have not heard anything," he said.
Tully was a passenger in his parents' car about 6 a.m. Jan. 6 when he got out near Ridge Avenue and Lincoln Drive at the I-76 West off-ramp.
Police say he walked toward City Avenue, and has not been seen since.
His family has said he suffers from bipolar disorder and was not taking his medication.
The father of three children has been a teacher at the Middle Bucks Institute of Technology in Warwick. He was named teacher of the year by the Pennsylvania Association for Career and Technical Education in 2014.
On the identity issue, Philadelphia police said:
"Even if someone has an identity in his pocket, we would not release ID until the medical examiner's office can confirm through an autopsy," said police affairs spokeswoman Officer Christine O'Brien, "and that will not happen today."
"We don't get paid to speculate, so we will not just assume we know who this is," she said.
"Mr. Tully - I know everyone is assuming - is not the only missing person we have in Philadelphia. This could be anybody at this point."
"I know Mr. Tully's story has gotten a lot of attention, so everybody is automatically assuming that this could be him," O'Brien said. "And it very well could be, but we can't speculate on that."
215-854-2831