He Disappeared on a Road Trip. Now, a New Development

Authorities believe body found in Calif. river is that of automotive writer David Gordon Johnson
By Jenn Gidman,  Newser Staff
Posted Jun 22, 2019 8:00 AM CDT
He Disappeared on a Road Trip. Now, a New Development
In this photo taken March 3, 2019, Jaclyn Trop, right, is seen with David Gordon Johnson in Felton, Calif.   (Jaclyn Trop via AP)

It's not the news the family and friends of David Gordon Johnson had been hoping for. Per the New York Post and CNN, the Calaveras County Sheriff's Office reported Friday that a body was found Thursday in the Mokelumne River, near the inlet of a lake, north of Valley Springs, Calif.—and they're tentatively identifying it as Johnson's. The 44-year-old automotive writer was last heard from on June 5, when he texted Jaclyn Trop, said to be his girlfriend or fiancee, from a road trip on which he was test-driving a motorcycle for a work assignment. His phone, laptop, and other items were found near the river after he vanished. The medical examiner is looking into the cause of death of the body found and trying to make a positive identification. (More missing person stories.)

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