The east side of Jordanelle State Park has reopened after a 61-year-old Wasatch County man was found dead near the Ross Creek day use area Thursday.
Sheriff Jared Rigby said the man was found lying next to his car on the shoulder of Shoreline Drive at about 11 a.m. One car door was open and its blinkers were on.
The sheriff said a person passing through the area called 911 to alert law enforcement.
“Our 911 center sent our deputies and medical here and found that there was a man that had passed away,” he said. “They weren’t able to do any work to resuscitate him. He’d been dead for an extended period of time.”
Rigby said preliminary reports show the homicide was precipitated by a road rage incident. He said investigators believe the deceased man turned down Shoreline Drive about 11 p.m. Wednesday and was followed by another car.
“We do have some video that we’re reviewing, so it’s from here in the area, and I think that tomorrow we’ll be able to say with some more detail exactly where all that comes from,” he said.
The sheriff's office believes the second involved vehicle may be a Jeep Gladiator or Rubicon.
Rigby did not give additional details about the video footage, but residents of the Deer Mountain neighborhood, which overlooks the reservoir, told KPCW police were knocking on doors looking for footage from security cameras that were pointed at the lake.
One resident said an officer told him they were seeking the video as part of a homicide investigation.
Rigby did not disclose a cause of death. He also did not disclose the man’s identity, pending notification of his family.
Multiple agencies were assisting Wasatch County with its investigation, including the Summit County Sheriff’s Office, the Heber City Police Department, the Park City Police Department, Utah State Parks and the Utah Attorney General’s Office.
Rigby offered his condolences to the man’s family.
“We're most concerned about the loved ones in the family that that are impacted by this and our hearts go out to them,” he said. “We'll continue to be working with them, trying to provide resources and do whatever we can to help.”
Rigby said there is no immediate threat to the public.
He asked anyone with information about the incident to contact law enforcement.
The Wasatch County Sheriff's Office can be reached at (435) 654-1411.
