A middle-aged man was found dead in a pond at Passaic’s Third Ward Park Tuesday morning after someone spotted a backpack floating in the water and called police. The man had recently moved to Passaic and had not yet been identified, and authorities said there were no signs of foul play.
Police received a call at approximately 11 a.m. Tuesday reporting that a backpack had been spotted in Hughes Lake, according to NJ.com. Police and Parks Department officers responded, retrieved the backpack from the lake, and then found the man’s body in the water, per the same report.
Mayor Confirms Discovery, Identity Still Unknown
Passaic Mayor Hector Lora confirmed that a middle-aged man was found dead in the pond Tuesday morning, the outlet’s report notes. As of the latest update, the man’s identity had not been determined, and officials had not released further details about how he died.
Authorities said there were no signs of foul play, though the circumstances surrounding his death remain otherwise unclear. The man was described only as having recently moved to Passaic before his death, with no additional background provided by officials.
A Separate, Unrelated Case From Earlier This Year
The pond discovery comes months after a different case drew attention in Passaic County, when authorities identified a body found in the Passaic River as a local resident, according to a separate NJ.com report from June. That case is not known to be connected to the Hughes Lake discovery, and no link between the two has been established.
For now, officials have not released any additional findings beyond the initial report of the man’s death and the absence of signs of foul play. Hoodline will update this story as more information becomes available.
