Park rangers with the Great Smoky Mountains National Park found the body of a missing Louisville man Tuesday.

The body of William Lee Hill Jr., 30, was found Tuesday afternoon at around 1 p.m. off Rich Mountain Road, approximately 2 miles north of Cades Cove.

“Our thoughts are with the family and friends of Mr. Hill during such a difficult time,” said park Superintendent Cassius Cash.

It's believed Hill and a companion, Joshua Morgan, came to the park Friday in search of ginseng. The two separated during the day. Rangers began searching for Hill on Sunday after hearing no word from him.

While the cause of death is not yet known, rangers found an aggressive bear in the area that had scavenged Hill's remains. The bear continued to show aggressive behavior even as rangers worked to recover Hill's body.

Wildlife biologists responded to the area, trapped the bear, and recovered human DNA from it. Out of concern for public safety, park officials determined the best course of action would be to humanely euthanize the bear.

“While the cause of Mr. Hill’s death is unknown at this time, after gathering initial evidence, consulting with other wildlife professionals and careful consideration, we made the difficult decision to euthanize this bear out of concern for the safety of park visitors and local residents,” said Superintendent Cash.

“This is always one of the hardest decisions a wildlife manager has to make, and is one that we did not take lightly. Over 2 million visitors come to the Cades Cove area annually and there are several residential areas very close to where we found Mr. Hill’s body. We could not take the risk of allowing this bear to approach or show aggression towards other people," Cash added.

The incident remains under investigation.