Police Find Body of Missing Fisherman in Lyme

A state police dive team located the body of a missing fisherman in Lyme on Tuesday.

Crews found the body of Julius K. Thigpen, 50, of Hartford, around 1:30 p.m. in Hamburg Cove, near where his boat was discovered on Monday, according to the Department of Energy and Environmental Protection.

Thigpen was last seen early Sunday when it's believed he came to the area to fish. Family members came looking for him and found his car and trailer at about 4 a.m. Monday before calling state police about twenty minutes later.

Old Saybrook firefighters found his 12-foot power boat anchored at about 6 a.m. Monday, but there was no sign of the Thigpen and the vessel hadn't capsized, DEEP officials said.

"There's a lot of underground trees and branches so he can easily be caught in something where he couldn't free himself and that's the biggest fear," Shannon Tracy, of Lyme, said.

Troopers, firefighters, the U.S. Coast Guard and a dive team also responded Monday to search for the boater. About a dozen departments and agencies were assisting with the search and helicopters also circled overhead on Monday.

State police said the Thigpen had fished in the waters there before.

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