Missing CDC scientist Timothy Cunningham found dead in river that runs by his home
The body of Timothy Cunningham, a Centers for Disease Control and Prevention scientist who mysteriously disappeared two months ago, was found late Tuesday in an Atlanta river that runs near his home, police said Thursday.
People fishing on the Chattahoochee River saw the body and called 911.
Police said Cunningham, who was not married, was wearing his favorite running shoes and the "avid collector" of rare stones had three crystals in his pocket, Time reported.
Fire department officials said he was found in an area inaccessible by foot. They used an inflatable rescue boat to get to him.
"We may never be able to tell you how he got into the river," Maj. Michael O'Connor of the Atlanta police department told reporters Thursday, reported ABC News.
Drowning is the preliminary cause of death, according to the medical examiner, who also said there were no signs of foul play. The manner of Cunningham's death has not yet been determined and it's not clear where exactly he entered the river, which authorities had already searched.
They said the condition of the body dovetails with when Cunningham was last seen on Feb. 12.
His smiling face appeared on numerous "missing" posters around Atlanta and online for weeks as family, friends, neighbors, co-workers and even people across the country searched for clues and theorized about his whereabouts.
Described as a highly respected epidemiologist — a "golden boy" by one colleague — for the CDC, the 35-year-old vanished after he left work on the morning of Feb. 12, telling his CDC colleagues he wasn't feeling well.
Police believe he went back to his home in northwest Atlanta, but that's about all they know of his last movements.
Nothing seemed to be missing from his home — his cellphone, credit cards, wallet, car keys were there. So was his beloved Tibetan spaniel, which concerned his family.
“This is an extremely unusual set of circumstances,” O’Connor said at a Feb. 27 news conference. “Every single belonging we were aware of was located in the residence.
“It is not common in missing-person cases for us to find someone’s entire belongings.”
Police knocked on doors in his neighborhood and searched nearby woods and a cemetery in the area and found nothing.
In the first days after his disappearance, conspiracy theorists filled in their own blanks. Some people speculated that Cunningham was a whistle-blower who had warned that the flu shot was responsible for this year's deadly season.
His father called that a lie. Police shot down the theory, too, saying Cunningham worked with chronic, not infectious, diseases, and didn't have access to classified information.
According to People, Cunningham's career highlights included co-writing 28 publications about how health issues affect minorities. He also worked on numerous public health emergencies, including the Ebola outbreak and the Zika virus.
Last October, the Atlanta Business Chronicle featured him as one of its “40-Under-40” rising stars in the region.
His parents told police about a "worrisome" phone call and text messages that their son, a Morehouse College and Harvard University graduate, had left for them on Feb. 11.
Police said Thursday his body was identified by dental records. A toxicology report is pending.
This story was originally published April 5, 2018 at 5:00 PM with the headline "Missing CDC scientist Timothy Cunningham found dead in river that runs by his home."