The search for a missing Kinkora man has come to a tragic end on Prince Edward Island.
Justin Brad Hunter, 32, had been missing since 1 a.m. Tuesday after some friends dropped him off at the apartment he shared with his fiancée.
His car was later found down an embankment and search crews found the man’s body Thursday afternoon.
Police called in a search crew to help look for Hunter after they responded to a report of an overturned car spotted down an embankment on Route 225 near Kinkora.
Police say the car landed on its roof, but there wasn’t a lot of damage. They also say there were no obvious signs of injury in or around the car.
“The airbags didn’t deploy,” says RCMP Sgt. Andrew Blackadar. “There’s no indication of blood or anything in the car.”
A set of footprints were spotted leading away from the vehicle but police say high winds soon filled the footprints with snow.
Searchers spent two full days scouring the area along Route 225, in temperatures as low as -30 with the wind chill, and an RCMP helicopter also joined in the search effort.
About 30 volunteers used poles to look for dramatic changes in the depth of snow and to search for buried items.
“We went and travelled the perimeter of the location, approximately three to four kilometers,” says East Prince RCMP Const. Steven MacNeill. “At some point it would be close to four miles in the area.”
Search crews found Hunter’s body in the woods Thursday afternoon, about 500 metres from his overturned car.
Neighbours say Hunter was well liked in the small community of Kinkora.
“Everybody I talked to say he’s a great guy, really, really nice, down to earth, really friendly,” says Megan Fletcher. “I know he works at McCains and a lot of people from there say he’s absolutely just a great person. It’s horrible this has happened to him.”
An autopsy will be performed Friday to determine the cause of death.
With files from CTV Atlantic's Jonathan MacInnis and The Canadian Press
