Estimated read time: 2-3 minutes
This archived news story is available only for your personal, non-commercial use. Information in the story may be outdated or superseded by additional information. Reading or replaying the story in its archived form does not constitute a republication of the story.
Gene Kennedy reportingSgt. Rosie Rivera, Taylorsville Police Dept.: “Late last night after the media ran the 10 o'clock news, we did get several calls from different people reporting missing persons."
A phone call solves a mystery. Taylorsville police now know the identity of a body found yesterday.
Wendie Bond's body was found by a pedestrian along 4500 South yesterday afternoon. The woman's son saw news reports and notified authorities.
We're learning new details this afternoon about her background and what may have contributed to her death.
The woman's teenage son later provided police with a photograph. Sure enough, it was his mother.
Police say the woman is 39 years old and has a history of mental illness, including suicide attempts. She was released from jail over the weekend. Police believe she may have been involved in a DUI.
As for what caused her death, investigators are not sure. Passersby found the body near 4500 South 900 West, not far from the woman's apartment complex. Police say there's no indication the woman was dumped there, no signs of road rash on the body. Investigators do not believe she was murdered.
Sgt. Rosie Rivera, Taylorsville Police Dept.: There were no obvious signs of death homicide, robbery anything like that so it could be just a medical condition, a drug condition, something like that and that's why we were concerned to find family and trying to find out who the person is."
Witnesses found the body on its back, an indication this woman may have slipped and hit her head, but so far there are no signs of head trauma. Investigators say the autopsy results will help clear that up and police are expected to release those results after four o'clock today.
If alcohol or medication played a role in this death, police will have to wait for toxicology results and typically that takes weeks.
