UPDATED March 6, 2020: Authorities have publicly identified the man whose body was found last week in the Willamette River as Alexander Crocker, 26.

Crocker, who lived in the Albany area, was reported missing in December, according to the Marion County Sheriff’s Office. He hadn’t contacted family since late November, the agency said.

No signs of foul play were discovered during Crocker’s autopsy.

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Investigators are trying to identify a man whose body found Thursday morning in the Willamette River.

The Marion County Sheriff’s Office said that around 11:20 a.m., a boater reported finding a body in the river near the Buena Vista Ferry, a few miles south of the city of Independence.

Marine patrol and search and rescue crews recovered the body, which was partially decomposed. Investigators said they don’t yet know the man’s identity or how long his body had been there. There is an autopsy scheduled for Friday morning at the state medical examiner’s office.

The sheriff’s office asked anyone with information about missing persons from that area to call 503-588-8507.

The same day, the Dechutes County Sheriff’s Office said it had identified the body of a person found in the woods 10 days before.

News station KTVZ reported that investigators identified the body as that of Chase Hove, a man who had been reported missing to Bend police almost three years ago.

The sheriff’s office said a hiker had found human skeletal remains on Feb. 17 while hiking near the Deschutes River Woods area on Forest Service land. A forensic examination of the remains determined they belonged to Hove, who had been missing since June 2017. Hove’s disappearance at the time prompted large volunteer searches.

Police also found a gun with the remains, leading them to investigate the case as a suicide.

Hove was 26 when he disappeared.

—Jayati Ramakrishnan; 503-221-4320; jramakrishnan@oregonian.com; @JRamakrishnanOR

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