The search for a missing Massachusetts man ended this week, thanks to warmer temperatures across New England.
Police have recovered a body they believe belongs to missing man Jason Thomas from Lake Quannapowitt in Wakefield, Massachusetts, according to police.
Medical examiners still need to identify the remains, which were pulled from the water on Tuesday, March 17.
They will also determine what killed Thomas. No foul play is suspected at this time, cops said.
Thomas, 45, was reported missing late last year, investigators said.
The lake had been frozen for the majority of the winter, concealing Thomas’ body beneath a thick sheet of white ice.
However, the oncoming spring brought unreasonably warmer temperatures to New England last week, leading to the thawing of the lake.
The body was spotted by a police detective who had been in the area searching for clues.
Middlesex District Attorney Marian Ryan and Wakefield Police Chief of Police Steven Skory said in a joint statement the clothing on the recovered body matches the outfit that Thomas was last seen wearing.
Thomas reportedly left his home without his phone on the night of December 12 and never came back. His wife reported him missing the next day.
Police had previously searched the same area with K-9 units and aerial drones but found no sign of the missing man.
In a Facebook alert that was posted three months ago, police said Thomas was last seen at approximately midnight in the area of Murray Street and Chestnut Street in Wakefield.
Thomas was described as standing 5-foot-6 and weighing roughly 180 pounds.
He was last seen wearing a white and grey puffer-style jacket, black pants, black sneakers with white laces, a black winter hat and gloves.
Shortly before he vanished, Thomas lost both of his parents. His wife, Kristen Bartoli, told NBC Boston his mother had recently died from dementia. Not even two hours later, his father died in his arms of a heart attack, Bartoli said, describing him as a loving husband, a “fur dad” to five dogs — Dazzle, Prosecco, Champagne, St. Germain, and Fireball — and a proud uncle.
Thomas was working at Novartis as an assistant director of chemical biology.
Last year, police suspected Jason’s remains might be in Lake Quannapowitt.
“The lake was partially frozen on December 13th, and it froze over completely shortly thereafter,” Skory told NBC News. “It’s been completely frozen since.”
Police ask that anyone with any information about Thomas’ disappearance or death contact them at (781) 245-1212.
