Sheriff’s office: No foul play in case of body found in burning car at campsite

Authorities say they do not suspect foul play contributed to the death of a man whose body was found in a burning car at a Douglas County campsite near Clinton Lake.

“Sheriff’s Office detectives have recently concluded their investigation into the incident and no foul play is suspected,” Sgt. Kristen Channel of the Douglas County Sheriff’s Office said this week, in an email response to questions from the Journal-World.

Shortly before noon March 7, deputies were dispatched to a car fire at Rockhaven Campground, 1046 East 700 Road. Once the fire was extinguished, a body was discovered inside the vehicle.

At the time, the park was closed for the season. A reporter observed a charred area about the size of a car within the parking lot.

The case remained open for months, with the deceased person not positively identified, as the sheriff’s office awaited lab results from evidence collected in the investigation.

The body has been identified as that of a 45-year-old man from Independence, Mo., Channel said.