By Cleopatra Murphy

Freeport News Reporter

cleopatra@nasguard.com

The badly decomposed body of a homeless man was discovered in a 40 foot- white trailer on Adventurer's Way, near the Garden Villas community by a resident yesterday morning.

Police officers were notified of the discovery at 9:45 a.m. Tuesday.

When they arrived on the scene, the body of the deceased, whom residents called "Foxy," was discovered hunched on the ground of the trailer.

Police have no idea how long "Foxy's" body was laying in the cluttered trailer before it was discovered, however, foul play was not suspected.

Reports revealed that officers found the deceased hunched on the ground with his body badly decomposed.

"The body was balled up and it appeared as though he was leaning on the bed," said an eyewitness, adding that the scent in the trailer was extremely potent.

"The scent was horrible. It is something that you would remember for a long time."

The victim died in the trailer surrounded by a few possessions, nobody knew his full name or what led to his unfortunate circumstances.

Area residents said they did not even know he lived in the trailer where he ultimately died.

Sources told The Freeport News that the deceased's body was in an advanced state of decomposition.

Patricia Belony, a resident in the area said she had passed the closed trailer where "Foxy's" body was discovered Saturday and smelled an odor, but was uncertain where it was coming from.

"I was walking, going through the track road and I smelled the scent, so I told a friend of mine who was walking with me that something doesn't smell too right. He said every time he passed, he smelled the odor, but he didn't know where it was coming from," she said.

Belony said she dismissed the scent, thinking it might have been a dead dog.

Now in hindsight, she said, it might have been "Foxy's" body she smelled.

"Only one man could have said who it was in there and that's the man above. I can't tell you what was in there from what was not in there. It could have been a dead dog just as well, because they go about these places and die. I couldn't tell if it was a human or a dog as far as I know," she said.

Another area resident, Ricardo Dean, said he learned of the body's discovery and went to investigate, hoping it was not one of his friends.

"You know, there are a lot of basers around here that use drugs and so forth and so on, but I hope that it's no one that I know personally," he said.

It was a short time later that he learned the deceased was "Foxy," a tall man, that he frequently saw walking around the community.

Dean added that it was unfortunate that the man died alone and nobody knew what had occurred.

"I think it's really bleak, because this is not a good scene ... in a trailer like that. It looks like the person really was struggling and trying to make ends meet," he said.

Another area resident told The Freeport News that she knew the man from seeing him in the neighborhood, but did not know his full name.

"He was a tall man and he used to have this walk. I used to hail him all the time," she said.

Many residents in the area were clamored around the scene and as word spread that the mystery man in the trailer was "Foxy," residents voiced their sorrow that he had not been seen for a few days.

Police are uncertain of the age of the man, but believe he was between the ages of 40 and 60.

Police are continuing their investigation into the matter.

In other crime news, officers recovered a 9-millimeter pistol off the streets of Grand Bahama on Monday.

Officers from the Eight Mile Rock Division were conducting inquiries just off Bayshore Road, in Bartlett Hill, Eight Mile Rock when they found the pistol with an empty magazine at 9:50 a.m.

The weapon was taken into custody by police; however, no arrest was made in the matter.

Officers from the Central Detective Unit are continuing their investigation into the matter.