Authorities have released the identity of the man whose body was found in the Watauga River last weekend as a local man who had been missing since late last year.
Carter County Sheriff Dexter Lunceford announced on Thursday the man had been identified as Bobby Mobley, 34, of the Lynn Valley Community. Mobley had been missing since just before Christmas according to Lunceford.
“The cause of death has not been confirmed at this time, we are still waiting on word from the medical examiner,” Lunceford said.
Mobley’s body was discovered on April 15 in the Watauga River near Sycamore Shoals Drive. At the time of the discovery, deputies said it appeared the body had been in the river for some time.
Mobley’s body was the second body to be found in the Watauga River within one month. The body of Jacob Hampton was found in the river near Riverside Drive on March 29.
“There is nothing to indicate that they are related,” Lunceford said of the two discoveries. “They happened four months apart.