Updated April 19, 2010

A body was found near the water tower in the woods behind the Skytop offices on South Campus at around 12:30 p.m. Friday, said Onondaga County Sheriff Kevin Walsh.

The body was identified, but Walsh could not release the name until the police notified the family of the deceased, he said. The body was not a Syracuse University student. The Onondaga County Sheriff’s office could not be reached for further comment on the identification or cause of death as of Sunday night.

The cause of death was unknown Friday, but there appeared to be no foul play involved, Walsh said.

“There was nothing suspicious,” he said.

Around 2:50 p.m. the body was transported from the scene to the medical examiner in an unmarked ambulance. The examiner will determine the cause of death, Walsh said.

A young woman discovered the body while she was jogging through the area at the end of Skytop Road. Walsh believes the woman who found the body is an SU adjunct professor, he said.

The woman who found the body, which was 10 to 15 feet away from the path, did not have to leave the trail to see the body, Walsh said. It would have been obvious to anyone walking along the trail, he said.

The police have not blocked off any part of the woods or trail, and the scene has been completely cleaned up, Walsh said. Students are free to go into the area, he said.

At the scene were the Department of Public Safety, the Onondaga County Sheriff’s Department, ambulances from the Town of DeWitt, paramedics and a rescue fire truck.

Published on April 15, 2010 at 12:00 pm