New Jersey River hands over body of Wall Street Journal Reporter- missing for 14-months

David Bird, a Wall Street Journal reporter who has disappeared over a year ago now has been positively identified when his body was found in the New Jersey River. Officials have confirmed on Thursday.

Bird had been missing since Jan 11, 2014, when he went out for a walk from his residence by the Passaic River in Long Hill Township and never returned home after that. Bird, 55, has been identified with the help of dental records. He was a energy markets reporter at the Wall Street Journal, published by the News Corp, reports the Morris County Prosecutor’s Office in a statement.

On Wednesday, 2 men were canoeing on the New Jersey River when they came across the red jacket that Bird was wearing during his disappearance. They immediately contacted the police who then found the remains of the body for identifying the body, the prosecutor stated.

The prosecutor stated that “At this time, the Medical Examiner’s investigation into the cause and manner of death is ongoing.”

In a statement released by the family spokeswoman Carolyn Buscarino, Bird’s family has thanked the law enforcement for their tireless effort in finding David Bird. They have also requested for privacy and informed that the arrangements for Bird’s funeral are still pending.

Bird has worked for Dow Jones for over 20 years before he went missing and was a Boy Scout leader and a marathon runner. He was also the father of 2 teenagers.

The family had offered a reward of $10,000 for finding Bird.

Police have informed that Bird had undergone a liver transplant and was believed to have been without the medicine that he was supposed to intake on a regular basis.

According to Bird’s wife, the day of his disappearance, Bird had helped take down their family Christmas tree and had gone out for some fresh air during a break sometime around 4 p.m.