Click here to subscribe today or Login.
OLD FORGE — A man’s body was found in the Lackawanna River on Friday afternoon, but his name has yet to be released.
“It’s scary, it’s really scary. Stuff like this never happens in Old Forge. I’m pretty sure the last time something like this happened was before I was born,” said Renee Fumanti, who has lived in the borough for 27 years.
She says it’s a close-knit community where friends become family.
“Everyone knows everyone. If you walk down the street, you talk to anyone that you see, they’ll know you. You talk pizza, football, basketball, stuff like that.”
She says she saw a post on Facebook about a body being found in the river near Jetz Car Wash on South Main Street, so she got in her car and drove right down.
Investigators say the body had been in the water for several days.
Old Forge Police Chief Jason Dubernas says he isn’t sure how the body was spotted and could not say whether the death appears suspicious.
However, he was able to shed some light on the man’s identity, ruling out that the body is that of Robert Baron, the Old Forge man who has been missing since January.
“We do have identification. The male is not our missing male Robert Baron, but I’m not going to release the identity until the next of kin and family is notified.”
The chief also confirmed that the case is now being handled by Duryea Police.
An autopsy has been scheduled for Saturday.