Bexar County investigators are searching for a damaged Ford F-150 they believe struck and killed a man whose decomposed body was found along a Southeast Bexar County road Wednesday.
The Bexar County Sheriff’s Office said Thursday that investigators identified the vehicle as a 2004-2008 Ford F-150 with damage to the front passenger side. The pickup is also believed to be missing its passenger-side headlight assembly.
The truck had not been located as of Thursday, and BCSO is asking the public for help finding it.
The development comes a day after a crew cutting grass discovered the man’s body in brush along Hildebrandt Road. BCSO responded to the 8500 block after receiving a report of a deceased person.
Investigators now believe the man was struck by a vehicle whose driver left without rendering aid or notifying emergency medical services.
Sheriff Javier Salazar said Wednesday that the body was found about 6 to 10 feet from the roadway in vegetation nearly 6 feet tall, obscuring it from the road and even from several feet away.
Workers preparing to cut the grass found the body while checking the area for objects that could damage their equipment.
The advanced state of decomposition prevented authorities from immediately identifying the man. Salazar said he appeared to be in his 30s or 40s and had likely been dead for at least three to five days.
Injuries to the man’s lower body, along with evidence recovered at the scene, led authorities to suspect he had been struck by a vehicle.
“We believe it to be a traffic fatality at this point,” Salazar said Wednesday.
Salazar said Wednesday that investigators were considering whether the man could be someone recently reported missing in the area. The missing person’s description and the timeline of the disappearance were similar, though the clothing did not appear to match.
BCSO has not identified the man or confirmed a connection to the missing-person case.
Anyone with information about the Ford F-150 or the case can contact BCSO at 210-335-6000 or email BCSOTIPS@bexar.org.