The Sheriff’s Office has identified the body found April 1 in the Big River north of Cedar Hill.
“The Regional Medical Examiner’s Office determined this week the body is that of 56-year-old Delbert Kinsey of Lonedell,” the Sheriff’s Office reported today, April 8, in a written statement. “While there were no obvious signs of trauma, the official cause of death has yet to be determined by the medical examiner.”
Kinsey was reported missing Feb. 19, after his truck was found abandoned near the intersection of highways B and C near Morse Mill.
“Our agency, along with numerous others, spent the following weeks investigating this case and searching the river for any sign of Mr. Kinsey. Our condolences are with the Kinsey family as they cope with their loss,” Sheriff Dave Marshak said in the written statement.
The body was found in the Big River near Old Byrnesville Road and Irish Lane, the Sheriff’s Office reported.
Kinsey’s wife, Marylou, told authorities she last saw her husband the morning of Feb. 19 at their home before he left for work, Sheriff’s Office spokesman Grant Bissell said at the time.
He said Kinsey’s wife told first responders her husband got up around 5 a.m. that day and left the house for work at the silica plant in Crystal City, and at about 7 a.m. his employer called her asking where he was. Kinsey’s wife said she tried calling her husband and got no answer, so she drove the route he normally traveled to work and found his truck near the bridge over the Big River on Hwy. B.
Marylou’s sister, Donna Roosevelt, said the Kinseys had been married for almost 30 years.
Roosevelt also said her brother-in-law had applied for early retirement so he could travel with his wife and spend more time outdoors.