UPDATE: 10:36 a.m. Thursday, April 30, 2020 - Authorities have identified the man recovered from the Klamath River, which was found on the evening of April 20.
Investigators said the identity is 57-year-old Egbert Pepper, most recently of Happy Camp, but previously from the San Bernardino County area.
The death is still considered suspicious, however, deputies said the cause and manner of death have not been determined.
"According to detectives, their investigation has revealed Mr. Pepper was last seen alive on March 7, 2020, in the Happy Camp area," Siskiyou County Sheriff Jon Lopey said.
Anyone with information about this case or Mr. Pepper’s whereabouts on or after March 7 is asked to contact detectives by calling the SCSO’s 24-hour Dispatch Center at 530-841-2900.
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SISKIYOU COUNTY, Calif. – Siskiyou County Sheriff’s Deputies are investigating a suspicious death after a body was recovered from Klamath River on Monday evening, according to Sheriff Jon Lopey.
Around 6:40 p.m., one of the Siskiyou County Sheriff’s Deputies said he was working in the Happy Camp area when a citizen reported that a body was floating in the Klamath River.
The body was found to be floating near the bridge, 13.7 miles west of Happy Camp along the SR-96 corridor, deputies said.
Deputies took out a tribal boat, which was purchased for river-type operations and rescues. The body was then retrieved from the river.
The decedent has not been identified and the sheriff’s office said the death is considered suspicious. An autopsy has been scheduled in Yreka for this week to assist investigators in learning the cause of death in this case.
"The Klamath River is a difficult waterway to navigate and the rapid recovery precluded what could have been a long-term search operation, especially had the recovery not been completed prior to total darkness," Sheriff Jon Lopey said in a press release. "The first step will be to conduct a forensic autopsy and detectives from SCSO’s Major Crimes Unit will work this week to identify the decedent. This case is still under investigation and anyone with information about this incident is urged to contact SCSO’s 24-hour Dispatch Center at (530) 841-2900.”