Cadaver dog finds missing Wichita man’s body in rural Marion County

A cadaver dog found the body of a missing 38-year-old Wichita man in rural Marion County. He had been missing since June 19.

“The investigation has not shown signs of foul play,” Marion County Sheriff Jeffrey Soyez said in a Thursday news release.

A missing poster for James Wayne Lightfoot says he was last known to be traveling to Junction City and his last known location was in Newton.

A farmer found Lightfoot’s Dodge Ram truck in a pond in an area just west of the Marion Reservoir around 5 p.m. Monday. The Kansas Highway Patrol did a search from an aircraft that night but was unsuccessful.

The next day, the Marion County Sheriff’s Department asked for help from the Sedgwick County K-9 cadaver team, which started its search at 9 a.m. Wednesday around the pond.

At 10:35 a.m., “one of the cadaver dogs lead the team” to Lightfoot’s body, the release says.