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21-year-old Santa Ana College baseball player James Wernke had last been seen Saturday afternoon when he went to take his girlfriend's dog for a walk in her family's Fullerton neighborhood. However, Wernke did not return, prompting his family to file a missing person report and the authorities to conduct a search for the young man.Wernke's body was found yesterday, "face down in about 2 feet of water in a remote, heavily wooded creekbed," reports LA Now. "Authorities are unsure but suspect he may have died after being swept up by a rain-swollen creek," and today the Orange County coroner is scheduled to conduct an autopsy that will hopefully "solve the mystery over his death."
The Fullerton PD have already ruled out anything suspicious in conjunction with Wernke's death, and note that during Saturday's heavy rains "water in the creek rose as high as 8 feet." A Facebook page set up by friends mourning the loss of Wernke currently has over 4,600 members, and includes photos that show him enjoying time in the outdoors, as well as hundreds of fond remembrances.
