Decomposed Body Was Shelby Man Who Died in June

A badly decomposed body discovered Friday afternoon in Shelby Township has been in the wooded area since June, township police said Monday.

"There's a lot of foliage and once the leaves dropped, it became apparent to motorists going by," Police Chief Roland Woelkers told Patch.

"It appears to be a potential suicide," Woelkers said, noting preliminary findings show no signs of foul play.

The body was hanging from a tree near the M-53 expressway and 23 Mile Road. A motorist notified police after spotting something suspicious in the woodland near a strip of land where builders have been clearing trees to make way for development.

More information regarding the death came to light Monday, with police stating the man was a Shelby Township resident in his mid-20s. His identity was not made public, pending the notification of kin, police said.

Woelkers said no one had reported the man missing. 

"It is a little unusual," he said. "Normally, someone would file a missing persons' report."

The investigation is ongoing and an autopsy is scheduled to take place Monday.