Authorities investigating the death of 53-year old James Russell Solomon, after his body was discovered in Baxter.
Putnam County Sheriff Eddie Farris said authorities received a call around 5:30pm about a body found off of Bryant Ridge Road in Baxter. Farris said the body has been sent to Nashville for an autopsy and that the Sheriff’s Department is conducting an active investigation.
“We’ll await for the initial results,” Farris said. “It didn’t appear that the body was disturbed in any manner. We didn’t have any obvious injuries to the body but we will wait for the report and just see what happens.”
Farris said the department is still asking for information about Solomon’s whereabouts before his sudden passing. Solomon had been released from the Jackson County Jail on February 24.
“Well, that was the real reason we put that in the press release cause we are not sure,” Farris said. “We thought that might help, and helping some people maybe coming forward and letting us know who was last with Mr. Solomon just hopefully hours or moments before his death. We are just not sure at this point.”
Farris said though foul play is not suspected the investigation is currently being treated as such.
“What we always do in any kind of death investigation, we work the scene as if it truly is a homicide whether it is or not just because of evidence collection and all the things and the box checking and the process that we need to go through,” Farris said. “Once we move the body and things are gone then we can’t go back and have a redo.”
Farris said the Sheriff’s Department has learned some new information about the case over the last 24 hours. Farris said since the investigation is still ongoing he could not share the new information.
