Connecticut Man's Body Washes Ashore in Deerfield Beach

The Broward Medical Examiner’s Office hasn’t determined the cause of death, and sheriff’s detectives haven’t ruled out foul play

The death of a Connecticut man remains a mystery nearly a month after his body washed ashore in Deerfield Beach, authorities say.

About 4:10 a.m. Oct. 17, a Broward sheriff’s deputy found Jay Harper’s body while patrolling the beach on an ATV near Embassy Suites, in the 900 block of Southeast 21st Avenue, according to sheriff’s spokeswoman Keyla Concepcion.

The Broward Medical Examiner’s Office hasn’t determined Harper’s cause of death, so sheriff’s detectives haven’t ruled out foul play, Concepcion said.

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Harper, 47, from Southbury, Conn., was visiting South Florida for a business conference, the Sheriff’s Office said. Sometime between midnight and 2 a.m. the day he died, Harper went to the beach with a female companion, the agency said.

Detectives have since interviewed the companion, and she isn’t considered a suspect, the agency said. Neither her name nor the nature of the pair’s relationship has been released.

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Did the companion report Harper missing? Did she leave the beach before something happened to him? Citing the open case Friday, the Sheriff’s Office declined to discuss such details. 

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